When I'm Gone
by Raxsah003
Summary: Hanna Grey has known Bruce since they were kids, she also has been in love with him since they were teens. Despite his infatuation with Rachel Dawes, she tries her best to move on with her life. When he returns after being missing for nine years, she finds that moving on might be harder than she thought. BrucexOC M for language and some sexual scenes.
1. Chapter 1

_**Sooooo... Yeah, I was bored. I finished writing my other story, and began to continue on this one. So, because you guys are just so awesome, and I'm bored. I figured I should post this.**_

**_Keep in mind that this is only edited by me and the main character might be a Mary-sue(Oh no!! What was she thinking?!) I wasn't, and quite frankly my readers, I don't give a damn._**

**_I love reviews, so don't feel shy, leave one. They make people's day._**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Batman, Nor do I own Christian Bale. I WISH!!! But... I do own the plot, and any OC's that you do not recognize.**

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T

_he sound of footsteps was echoing through the manor, which was soon joined by laughter. Thunder roared outside as the rain beat against windows, but it didn't seem to faze the children now running though the mansion. _

_"Tag, your it!" A girl shouted. Bruce turned toward her, scrunching his nose._

_"I hate being it." He stated. She laughed at him._

_"No tag backs." She told him, running up the stairs._

_"Who am I going to tag then?" she shrugged._

_"Tag Rachel." At that moment another girl ran into the large room, her eyes narrowing at the sound of that._

_"No, don't tag me, tag Hanna." She snapped. Bruce sighed and picked up an old tennis ball and began to bounce it off the floor._

_"This game is boring, let's do something else." He stated._

_"Yes, Mr. Wayne." Hanna jested._

_"Of course, Mr. Wayne." Rachel continued._

_"Whatever you say, Mr. Wayne." Hanna finished. She and Rachel began to laugh at their little joke, causing Bruce to turn red. He took the tennis ball and gripped it a little harder than he should have._

_"It's not funny." He muttered._

_"It is funny." Rachel remarked. Brue glared at her._

_"Oh come on Brucey, lighten up. Stop being such a spoiled little prince." Hanna shot. Bruce glared at her and threw the tennis ball her way. She shrieked and ducked, dodging the tennis ball coming at her. The tennis ball missed her and bounced off the wall, then hurtling itself into a extremely expensive vase and shattering it. _

_"Uh-oh." Rachel muttered._

_"Bruce?" called Martha Wayne. Bruce looked at the girls franticly._

_"Run." He hissed, the girls needed no further instruction. All three of them began running through the house, stopping when they heard the sound of adult footsteps._

_"In here!" Rachel hissed, pulling Bruce into a broom closet. Bruce quickly grabbed Hanna's hand and pulled her in with him. They quickly closed the door and squished themselves in the back of the closet, trying to get as far away from the door as they could. After a few minutes they heard the sound of Mrs. Wayne's heels click against the hard marble floor and saw the outline of them under the door._

_"Oh no." Bruce muttered. Hanna and Rachel quickly covered his mouth so he wouldn't say anything else, and watched her silhouette carefully._

_"I know you children broke the vase, and I'm not angry. So whenever you are ready to come out of hiding let me know." She told them, pausing for a moment before walking away. After a few moments the trio fell out of the closet, all of them laughing._

_"That was too close." Rachel muttered._

_"I thought she was going to yell at us." Hanna stated. Bruce shook his head._

_"Nah, I'm just going to get a lecture later." Hanna shrugged._

_"You deserve it, you broke the vase." She stated. Bruce narrowed his eyes at her, at an attempt to glare, though it didn't seem to have that affect. He went to say something, but before he could Rachel stood up and tapped his shoulder._

_"Tag, your it." She cried, then ran off with Hanna right next to her. Bruce sighed and ran after them, continuing their game._

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21 years later

_'Bruce Wayne, Back from the dead!'_ The message sent a wave of relief through her chest as she read the title on the front cover of the magazine. She sighed and put it down, running a hand through her dark long locks.

"Hanna!" a voice called into her office. She looked up and smiled as her deep blue eyes met her friends own pale blue.

"Rachel, you're out of your office." Rachel chuckled and sat down in a chair next to her friends worn desk.

"You're one to talk, I hardly ever see you out and about unless we're meeting for dinner." Hanna shrugged her shoulders.

"I'm busy." She defended lightly. Rachel smiled and looked around the worn classroom, sighing slightly.

"They really don't take care of this place well enough." She noted. Hanna sighed and nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, the sad thing is that the only funding the school get's is from the mob." Rachel shook her head in disbelief.

"Then why do you still work here? I thought you hate the mob." Rachel asked.

"I do, but I love teaching music more than I hate the mob." She explained. Rachel smiled and looked on her desk, frowning at the newspaper on her desk.

"So I guess you heard then." She stated. Hanna looked at the newspaper, smiling softly at the picture of Bruce. She looked back at Rachel and nodded.

"I did, I'm still in shock." She muttered.

"I can't believe he's still alive, he was gone for so long." Hanna agreed and tapped her fingers on the table for a minute, just looking at the paper.

"Have you seen him?" she asked. Rachel shook her head.

"No… I haven't. I've been so busy I didn't even bother," Hanna nodded and sat back. "Did you go see him?"

"No, between work and running around I haven't even thought about it. Plus I don't think I could bring Danny all the way to Wayne Manor. It's much too far for a weekday trip, then our weekends are filled with soccer and chores." Rachel smiled and shook her head.

"Yeah well, that's what happens when people grow up." She stated. Hanna nodded and began to fiddle with the hem of her skirt.

"I guess it's different for Bruce, he doesn't have any responsibility." She muttered.

"Well, he's rich, it's not like he has to do much." Rachel told her, laughing a little. Hanna also chuckled and shrugged. There was a moment of silence between them. Rachel looked over at her desk and saw a picture of the three of them, before they all left for college.

"I can't believe you still have this." She chuckled. Hanna looked at the photo and smiled.

"I was actually going to change it to something else, but I got so busy I forgot." She answered honestly. Rachel laughed and shook her head.

"Well, don't change it just yet, I want a copy of it." Hanna nodded.

"Of course," There was another moment of silence before she spoke once more. "We're still going out to dinner next week, right?" She asked. Rachel nodded and smiled warmly.

"Of course, is everything set up for you?" she asked. Hanna nodded and smiled.

"Yup, everything is set." Rachel stood up and grabbed her coat.

"Alright, I'll see you tomorrow." Hanna waved.

"See you tomorrow." She replied. Rachel waved back and left the classroom, leaving Hanna alone. Hanna paused for a moment, simply staring the door before looking back at the paper. Her lips pressed together as she looked over his picture in the paper. Something in her stomach stirred as her eyes traced over his features in the picture. She wondered if he still looked the same, even after all these years. She hadn't seen him when he came back from Princeton, she was away at West Chester University at the time, so she really had no idea how he had changed. Perhaps it was for the best, with Bruce in her life brought complication, and the last thing she needed was complication.

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Hanna sat down at her lunch table across from Rachel, rolling her eyes when she saw her finishing up some homework.

_"Rachel Dawes, you stick your nose any farther into your book it's going to get stuck there." She remarked. Rachel looked up and rolled her eyes._

_"Well, we can't all be as lazy as you Hanna Grey." Hanna tried to look insulted, but failed to do so._

_"I'm not lazy, I'm seventeen, which just means I like to have fun." She told her. Rachel chuckled and put her book away, focusing her attention on Hanna._

_"Alright, well, what kind of fun have you been having?" Rachel asked._

_"Like… boy fun." She told her. Rachel smiled._

_"I bet your brother is having a field day with that." Rachel muttered._

_"Who cares what Matt thinks, he's a loser."_

_"You only say that because he's your brother."_

_"You only defend him because you hooked up with him." Rachel grew red at the statement and lightly bit her bottom lip, thinking of a retort._

_"You hooked up with Sean Rogers." Hanna raised an eyebrow._

_"I was drunk, and honestly, who wouldn't, he's hot." She defended._

_"Who is hot?" A new voice asked. Hanna held back a smile as Bruce sat down next to Rachel._

_"Sean Rogers." Rachel answered. Bruce rolled his eyes._

_"He's a jerk." Hanna rolled his eyes._

_"And you're a brat, but girls are still trying to fuck you." She told him. Bruce chuckled lightly and rolled his eyes._

_"Yeah, but I'm rich." Rachel shook her head at the two of them._

_"Well something has to make up for your lack of personality." Hanna muttered._

_"Alright you two, play nice." Rachel interjected. Bruce smiled slightly and looked at Rachel, his eyes lighting up slightly. Hanna quickly avoided looking at them and focused on the table._

_"So, Chase's end of the year party is coming up." Bruce told her. Rachel nodded and looked at Hanna, who was still looking at the table. _

_"Are you going Hanna?" she asked. Bruce looked slightly dejected but recovered well. Hanna shrugged._

_"I don't know, probably not." She answered._

_"Why not?" Rachel asked._

_"We can't all be popular and have a ton of guys ask us out." Hanna stated. Bruce looked from Hanna then back to Rachel._

_"You were asked already?" Rachel nodded._

_"Yeah, by a few people." She answered._

_"Did you say yes to Aaron yet?" Hanna asked._

_"Aaron? As in Aaron Thomas?" Bruce asked. Rachel nodded, a little taken back by his sudden distaste in the boy, since they seemed to be friends._

_"Yeah, Aaron Thomas. And yes, I did agree to go with him." Rachel said. Bruce paused before looking at the table, a almost unnoticeably frown etched on his face._

_"He's hot, you'll have a fun time at the very least." Hanna told her. Rachel smiled and bit her lower lip lightly._

_"I hope so. Come on Hanna, someone had to ask you. Who asked you to the party?" Rachel asked. Hanna shrugged her shoulders and began tracing circles on the table._

_"Only a couple people, did. Sam Reynolds, Kevin Walker, Chris Harris, and a couple others." Hanna answered._

_"Sam is cute." Rachel told her._

_"He's a looser." Bruce muttered. Hanna nodded._

_"Kevin is nice, and he's good looking." Bruce scoffed._

_"He's only like that so he can get into girls pants." He stated. Hanna rolled her eyes and looked at Rachel._

_"I was thinking about saying yes to Chris, he seems decent enough."_

_"Why would you go with him? He's a jerk." Bruce snapped. Hanna looked at Rachel, who looked a little annoyed._

_"We can't go with anyone to the party, can we?" she asked. Rachel chuckled._

_"I'm not too sure." She answered. Bruce turned red._

_"I just think you two should go with guys who are respectable." He stated. Rachel rolled her eyes and ran a hand through her hair._

_"Like who, you?" she asked. He rolled his eyes._

_"No, I'm just… you know what I'm talking about." He snapped._

_"Yes, Mr. Wayne." Hanna said, taking on a slight British accent._

_"Of course, Mr. Wayne." Rachel continued._

_"Whatever you say, Mr. Wayne." Hanna finished. Both girls burst out in giggles and looked at Bruce, who was turning redder by the minute._

_"You guys are so mature." He said sarcastically. Rachel and Hanna began to laugh harder._

_"Your one to talk." Hanna snapped. He rolled his eyes._

_"Yeah, yeah, whatever." Rachel shook her head._

_"He's such Prince." She muttered to Hanna._

_"Brat is more like it." Hanna told her._

_"Mr. Wayne will do." Bruce interjected, causing the group to chuckle._

* * *

"Bruce?" Rachel asked, raising an eyebrow at his soaking wet attire. Bruce turned around and faltered for a moment.

"Rachel? Wow, it's really you?" he asked. She smiled lightly.

"What are you doing?" she asked. He looked down then looked back at her.

"Swimming." He stated. She chuckled a bit.

"I can see that." She muttered. Bruce looked her up and down, and paused at her face for a moment before speaking.

"What are you doing here?" he asked.

"I'm here to meet Hanna for dinner, we usually have dinner every month to stay in touch." Bruce's eyes went wide at the mention of this.

"Wow, Hanna Grey." He muttered.

"It's Hanna Sanders now." She told him. His eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

"Sanders?" he asked. She nodded in reply.

"She's Married now, even has a son." Bruce took a step back. It was hard to believe that Hanna was married and had a family. For some reason, he felt that she shouldn't be married, not to this guy anyway. Did he even know this guy?

"Who is the guy?" he asked.

"You know, if you went to see her you wouldn't have to ask me." Rachel told him. He looked down to the ground and bit his lip.

"To be honest, I wouldn't know where to find her." He admitted.

"Look Bruce, I've got to go. If you want to find Hanna, go to Gotham Central High School, she's a teacher there." She told him.

"Bruce, come on, we have more Hotels to buy!" a woman cried from his car. Rachel pressed her lips together and then looked back at him.

"I guess you're to busy to see her, I'll tell her you said hi." Rachel muttered, walking into the hotel restaurant. Rachel quickly made her way to the table and sat down, making Hanna jump up a little.

"Bad day?" Hanna asked. Rachel rolled her eyes.

"No, it was fine till I got here." Rachel told her.

"I'm sorry I make you so angry." Hanna jested. Rachel laughed a little.

"Not you, I ran into Bruce on my way in." Hanna's face fell as she nodded slightly.

"I saw him earlier, on my way in." she told her. Rachel looked confused, wondering why Bruce didn't tell her that he had already talked to Hanna.

"Did you guys say hello?" she asked. Hanna shook her head no.

"No, I didn't get a chance to." Rachel's eyebrows furrowed as she looked at Hanna. Hanna averted her deep blue eyes to the cloth on the table, avoiding her friends gaze. Rachel tilted her head.

"Why didn't you get a chance to?" she asked. Hanna smirked slightly.

"He was swimming." She stated. Rachel laughed lightly.

"He said something about that, he also told me to tell you he said hello." Hanna nodded and took a sip of her water.

"That was nice of him." She mumbled.

"Yeah, so I assume you got a babysitter for Danny tonight." Rachel stated.

"I sent him over to his grandparents, they didn't seem to mind watching him for a few hours." Hanna told her, letting her fingers trace over her glass.

"I bet he enjoyed that." Hanna nodded.

"Yeah, he enjoys seeing his grandfather. It's not like his father is around much." A waiter came over and quickly took their order, leaving them alone once more.

"He can't help it, he's in the Military, he's doing what he can for his country." Hanna sighed and ran a hand over her face.

"I know, but it's not fair to Danny that Nathan isn't around. He misses his daddy." Rachel gave her friend a sympathetic look.

"I know honey, it must be difficult." Hanna rolled her eyes.

"It's not all bad, I just hate staying up every night, praying he's okay." Rachel frowned slightly, but agreed.

"It's not fair, but I have a feeling in this town, it wouldn't be much different."

"Isn't that a depressing thought." Rachel nodded.

"I can't believe it, it's getting much worse. The mob is taking over the streets, the schools, the police-"

"And taking out the good cops as they go." Hanna muttered. Rachel lightly bit her lip, reaching over and taking her friends hand in hers.

"I'm sorry Hanna, I didn't mean to Bring up Mattie." Hanna shrugged.

"What's done is done, there isn't much else we can do about it."

"Things will get better, they have to." Rachel assured her. Hanna smiled, but it didn't seem to reach her eyes. There was a short silence before Hanna spoke again.

"Maybe things will get better." Rachel raised an eyebrow.

"You're talking about that bat fellow, aren't you?" Hanna nodded.

"He did bring down Falcone, he can't be all that bad."

"And he did give me information to help bring him down, after saving me from a mugger." Hanna's eyes went wide, but didn't say anything after Rachel shot him a look. Hanna took the chance to let her thoughts linger back to Bruce.

"This town is getting worse by the minute." She remarked.

"And we're turning to a guy in a bat suit to clean it up."


	2. Chapter 2

_**Mwahahahaha! I am back and I'm ready to caus trouble. Not really, but you catch my drift.**_

**_This chapter was already written, so I just skimmed over it real quick and posted it. I'm too busy re-reading my other story and just picking at it. I 'finished' it a few days ago, but I keep going back and adding more stuff. I just can't leave the damn thing alone. I have two chapters of it posted already, so if you like Star Trek, check it out!_**

**_ANYWAY!! I'm in a pretty decent mood. My week has been pretty chill. I'm going to go see a DCI show that's playing in a theater. It's 5 hours of pure marching band awesomeness!!!! Yeah, I know, I'm obsessed. But most of the people in my marching band are going, so maybe we'll throw a little party!_**

**_Okay, Reviews are wonderful, I love them. I look forward to reading them, it just makes my day. That and Blue Soda (Or Crack in a bottle, if you talk to my marching band.). So feel free to leave on. I enjoy em._**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Batman, Nor do I own Christian Bale. I WISH!!! But... I do own the plot, and any OC's that you do not recognize.**

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"Mattie, come on, stop being a jerk and get out of my room." Hanna stated as she crossed her arms.

_"I'm not being a jerk, you're just used to hanging out over at Wayne Manor while mom is working. I think Bruce's attitude is rubbing off on you." Mattie stated. Hanna rolled her eyes._

_"Just because you're all big, bad, and badass doesn't mean you have to be mean to me." She told him._

_"I'm a cop, I can't be badass." He said._

_"Last I heard, you were still a rookie, not even a cop yet." She jested._

_"Ouch sis, way to hit a sore spot."_

_"You'll live, now out of my room." She said, trying to push him out._

_"I just want to talk, I haven't seen you in a while." He told her. She sighed and sat down on her bed, giving up on getting him out of her room._

_"I'm pretty sure you were over here the other night, Matt." She reminded him. Matt rolled his eyes and sat down in a chair, turning it around backwards before doing so._

_"Is it so wrong to talk to my sister? We used to always talk." He told her. She looked up from her bed and furrowed her eyebrows, something in his voice seemed to sound desperate, almost scared._

_"Matt, what's wrong?" she asked. He sighed and ran a hand through his dark hair._

_"The streets are getting bad Hanna, I'm worried about you." Hanna raised an eyebrow at his statement._

_"You're worried about me? I'm the one who should be worried about you, you're the idiot who wanted to be a cop." She reminded him. He chuckled lightly._

_"I'm talking about you and your friends always out there, wandering around and all, it's not really a safe place to be." She rolled her eyes._

_"Come on Mattie, we're not wandering the streets." She told him._

_"Well, whatever you do, be careful." He said._

_"You worry to much Mattie." She said. There was a silence before he spoke again._

_"Do I? I don't know if you've been watching the news lately, but Gotham is in bad shape Hanna. People are getting killed just for looking at someone funny. Muggings are getting more violent. Just ask Bruce, he of all people would know." Hanna pressed her lips together. She knew he was right, she just didn't want to believe it._

_"I know, I'll be careful." She agreed. He stood up and walked over to her, giving her an awkward hug._

_"Thanks Hanna." He said, kissing the top of her head lightly._

_"You be careful too Matt, it's not much safer out there for you." He smiled and ruffled her hair a little bit._

_"Now who's worrying too much? Don't worry Hanna-Banana, I'll be fine." He told her, turning around and walking out. She sighed and bit her lower lip._

_"I hope so." She muttered._

* * *

Hanna stared into the room through the thick layer of glass, her heart clenching at the sight of the man in front of her. His dark brown hair was a complete mess, something which seemed a little foreign to her. His blue eyes darted around the cream colored room as his mouth moved quickly and quietly. Hanna crossed her arms and let her lips press together in frustration, frustration because she knew she couldn't help him at all.

"Mrs. Sanders!" a voice called. Hanna looked down the hall and tried to stop her face from falling as he walked toward her.

"Dr. Crane, I didn't know you were here." She said. He smiled at her, his striking eyes piercing her own.

"I was about to leave and thought I'd make a visit." He stated. She didn't fail to notice they way his eyes traced over her body, and she suddenly became uncomfortable.

"Thank you, I just stopped by to visit Mathew." She told him. He nodded and looked back at the man in the room.

"Yes, I figured as much." He replied. There was an uncomfortable pause between them. Crane glanced back at the woman in front of him. He took in the subtle curves that her dress seemed to show off. Her dark hair was pulled up into a messy bun, letting some gorgeous locks fall around her pale face. Her deep blue eyes seemed were deep enough to make anyone feel as though they were falling into a pool of water.

Crane didn't fail to notice that he made the woman uncomfortable, and he fed off of it. That was the only reason he saw her the way he did, if he didn't he wouldn't look at her twice. He loved the feeling of overpowering her, and he knew he easily could. He had a hard time understanding that such a fragile creature didn't belong to him, no matter how much he wanted her to. Even if he tried to force her into something, it would take far to long to break her, she was stronger in spirit than she was in body. So he didn't even try to put forth the effort.

"Is there any improvement with him?" Hanna asked, breaking him out of his thoughts. She was more than aware of his staring, and wanted nothing more than to run out of there. But she wasn't a fool, one wrong move on her part and her brother would suffer.

"I'm afraid not, but I'm making sure he get's the best care possible." He told her. She smiled politely at him and nodded.

"Thank you Dr. Crane, you have been much too kind." Crane smiled at her.

"Of Course Mrs. Sanders." She shook his hand, ignoring the fact that he held on a moment longer than he should have. After a moment she made her way out of Arkham and began walking to her in-laws to pick up her son. The night was cold, and she gave a small shiver as a gust of wind blew right in her face, but she quickly ignored it as she made her way to the monorail.

"It's not a good idea for pretty girls to be wandering the streets at night." A voice called from a car. She sighed and pressed her lips together, recognizing the voice immediately.

"Can I help you?" she asked. The car door opened and he immerged from the back seat, clad in a top of the line suit and jacket.

"Chill doll, Just thought I'd visit one of my main clients." He told her, walking closer. She crossed her arms over her chest. She had nothing to say to that. He smirked and took another step toward her. She stepped back, not wanting to get any closer to him. "Why so shy doll?" he asked.

"Forgive me if mobsters make me nervous." she snapped, though her eyes were full of apprehension. Maroni clenched his fist and took a step toward her, reaching his hand out and grasping her chin firmly within his hand.

"One day, Mrs. Sanders, I will be the one ruling this city. And you won't be so quick with the remarks." He snapped. She smacked his hand away.

"Sounds like hell if you ask me." She whispered. He glared at her once again and took a step back.

"Your already in hell, doll, I don't know how much worse you want it to get." He snapped. After a moment he turned around and made his way back to his car. "We'll keep in touch." He told her.

"Great…" she muttered, turning around and walking away.

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A scream erupted from Rachel as the trio sat in Bruce's den. Bruce gave a small laugh as Hanna smiled and chuckled.

_"Scared?" She asked. Rachel stuck her tongue out at her._

_"It's a scary movie." She stated._

_"Yeah, like ten years ago." Bruce told her. Rachel stood up._

_"I'm leaving." She stated, taking the popcorn bowl and walking out of the den. Bruce and Hanna exchanged looks._

_"She is such a baby when it comes to scary movies." Hanna muttered. Bruce shrugged and ran a hand through his hair._

_"Yeah, it does make movie night a little difficult. I'm not one for chick flicks." Hanna laughed._

_"Neither am I." she agreed. After a few moments of a comfortable silence Bruce spoke once more._

_"I asked Lisa Harrison to the end of the year party." He stated. Hanna ignored the pain in her chest and nodded her head._

_"She's a nice girl, I don't think she'd let you get past second base though." She told him, smirking slightly._

_"You know, I don't screw every girl I go out with." He told her. _

_"No, just the hot ones. The others are just to make Rachel see that your not shallow." Bruce sighed and looked at her._

_"Is it that obvious?" he asked. She paused for a moment, deciding the best thing to say. She shrugged her shoulders._

_"I guess not, it is for me because I'm around you guys all the time." She confessed. Bruce was silent for a moment, then shifted his position on the couch so he was facing her. Hanna turned toward him a little, but not fully._

_"I don't know what I have to do to get her to notice me, am I doing something wrong?" he asked. Hanna rolled her eyes and looked back at the movie._

_"Yes, you are. If you like her then tell her." She told him. 'Hypocrite.' she thought bitterly. Bruce sighed and shook his head._

_"It's not that easy." He stated. She nodded her head._

_"I know the feeling." She whispered. There was a pause._

_"Hey, Hanna, you're a girl, right?" Bruce asked. Hanna looked down her shirt, then turned back to Bruce._

_"It would seem that way." She replied._

_"Tell me the secret. How do guys get girls to like them?" Hanna rolled their eyes._

_"They don't ask stupid questions like that." She told him. His eyebrows furrowed._

_"What?" he asked. She chuckled and rolled her eyes._

_"Never mind, Bruce, never mind."_

* * *

"Danny, be careful with that ball, if it rolls in the street you're not getting it back." Hanna warned. Danny looked up at her, his big brown eyes meeting her deep blue.

"I won't loose it." He told her. She shook her head lightly and looked back to the fruits in front of the store.

"Danny, do you want bananas or apples?" she asked. Danny thought for a moment, throwing his soccer ball back and forth in his hands, then shrugged.

"I guess apples." He answered, dropping the ball and kicking it back up into his hands. Hanna turned toward him, raising an eyebrow.

"Danny, please be careful honey." She said softly. Danny rolled his eyes and waited for her to turn around to drop the ball once more. He then attempted to kick the ball back to his hands, but ended up kicking it toward the street.

"Darn!" Danny shouted, running after it. Hanna quickly turned around and saw him going toward the street, and ran after him. She quickly grabbed a hold of his arm and pulled him back from a car that would have hit him. The car suddenly stopped and Danny quickly picked up the ball, before being dragged back to the sidewalk by his mother. Hanna kneeled down to his level.

"Daniel Nathan Timothy Sanders, don't you ever do something like that again, do you here me?" Hanna scolded.

"But mom-" Danny started, but Hanna soon cut him off.

"No but moms, you could have been seriously hurt. Don't you scare me like that ever again, do you understand?" Danny nodded.

"I understand." He answered. She sighed and pulled him into a hug, then quickly broke away to stand up.

"Is everything alright?" a voice asked.

"Yes, just fine thank you." Hanna answered, before turning around. As soon as she did, she felt her breath get caught in her throat. It took him a minute, but he recognized her, and a smiled appeared on his face when he did.

"Hanna, it's nice to see you." The man said. She smiled shyly.

"Hey Bruce, long time no see." She spoke. Bruce took a few steps closer to her, taking a better look at her. Her dark hair was still the same and still rested right above the small of her back, maybe an inch or two longer. Her eyes were still a cool deep blue, but held a contradictory warm feeling they always had. She was a bit more curvier than he remembered, and she seemed to dress more conservative.

"Mom?" a voice asked. Bruce let his gaze linger down toward the young boy standing next to her. He seem to have inherited her dark hair, and even a few facial features seemed to be straight from her. Though his eyes were not a deep blue like Hanna's, instead, they were a warm brown.

"Oh, I'm sorry. Bruce, this is Danny, my son. Danny, this is my friend Bruce." She introduced. Bruce gave a small smile.

"Hello." Bruce said. Danny waved in response.

"Hi." He replied. Bruce looked at Hanna.

"I'm awfully sorry about before, I didn't see him run out." He told her. She looked confused before she realized that he was the one who almost hit him,

"Oh, don't worry about it. You didn't hit him, it's his fault for running out into the street." Hanna said, looking at her son at the last part.

"I didn't mean to, I had to get my soccer ball." He told his mother. Hanna shook her head lightly and looked back at Bruce, who was smiling softly at him.

"So, what brings you into this part of the city, Wayne manor get boring?" she jested. Bruce chuckled lightly.

"No, I was actually coming to see you, I know I haven't seen you in a while." Her face fell slightly, but she nodded her head.

"I'm glad you came to see me, I heard you were in town and was going to see you myself, but I've been very busy lately." She told him.

"I'm sure, Rachel told me that you were a teacher now." Hanna nodded.

"Yes, I teach music at Gotham Central High School." He smiled.

"I never pictured you being a teacher, I thought you were going to become a lawyer, what happened to that?" he asked. She shrugged and turned toward her son.

"Danny, you keep doing that and I'm going to take the ball away." She told him. Danny stopped bouncing the ball against the windows of the shop and made a face, moving the ball so he was holding it under his arm.

"I wasn't hurting anyone." He muttered. Hanna turned back to Bruce.

"I switched majors in school, I just wasn't as interested in law as I thought I would be. That's more Rachel's thing." She confessed. Bruce nodded and looked back at Danny, watching as he tried to twirl the ball on his finger, but failed and gave a frustrated sigh. He looked back at Hanna.

"So, you're a mom." He stated. She smiled and nodded.

"Yeah, I'm a wife too." She told him.

"So I heard, who is the lucky guy?" Bruce asked.

"Nathan Sanders, I met whim while at school. A year later we got married, a couple years later we had Danny." She explained.

"Where is he?" Hanna's eyes darkened slightly but her face didn't falter.

"In Iraq, he's in the military." She answered. Bruce paused and looked at Danny.

"Really, I never thought you'd marry a military guy." She rolled her eyes at him.

"And you never thought I'd be a mother either. Things change Bruce, whether you like it or not." She said, a bit bitter than she intended. Bruce looked down but didn't say anything. She sighed and looked back at Danny, who was kicking his soccer ball against the wall and then stopping it.

"Danny, come on, we need to head home honey." He kicked his soccer ball up into his hands and nodded.

"Okay." He answered. Hanna turned back to Bruce.

"It was good to see you, Bruce. Maybe me, you, and Rachel could get together, for old times sake." She suggested. Bruce nodded.

"Maybe, it was good to see you too." She smiled and held her hand out to her son. Danny quickly took it and they started walking down the street. Bruce was silent as he watched them disappeared around the corner. He still had a hard time wrapping his mind around the idea that Hanna was now married, and had a son. Perhaps things really had changed for Hanna, maybe for the better.


	3. Chapter 3

_**Ugh, I'm mad at my Laptop. I'm debating on having it wiped clean. It's just being annoying. I definitely need to re-install my security suite. The firewall works, but the virus scanner doesn't. LAME!!!**_

_**Anyway, I want to thank everyone who reviewed and alerted and added to their favorites list. It makes me smile. I love reviews more than alerts though. Just saying.**_

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of Christopher Nolan's excellent script's, he is a literary genius, I'm not… yet. I don't own Christian Bale either (I looked it up, and it IS illegal to own someone in the U.S., wait… isn't he English? Never mind, I wouldn't own him anyway.) I do own Hanna, Danny, and Nathan (Who I pictured to look like Channing Tatum, just with brown eyes.) I also own the plot. Don't steal.**

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* * *

_

"Having fun?" Hanna looked at her room mate and shrugged her shoulders.

_"Yeah, a little." She admitted. Her friend smiled smugly at her._

_"See, I said you would have fun, didn't I?" she asked. Hanna rolled her eyes and took a sip of her soda._

_"Yes, you did, and I was wrong. Are you happy now, Amanda?" she asked. Amanda shrugged her shoulders._

_"Yeah, I am. You know, you might even get laid." Amanda said. Hanna shook her head and continued to sip her drink._

_"Oh snap, looks like the boot camp rookies got the night off." Sasha stated, flipping her curly black hair. Hanna raised an eyebrow and looked over, watching as a bunch of clean cut men entered the club._

_"Nice, I need me one of them." Jordan muttered, her red hair falling in her face. Hanna looked at her._

_"Why, what's so great about a military guy?" she asked._

_"Other than the fact that they are some of the most well built men out there?" Amanda asked. Jordan and Sasha chuckled before Sasha stood up._

_"I'm not going to wait for them to come to me, I'm going to dance. Anyone want to join?" Jordan stood up immediately and followed her. Amanda also stood but paused to look at Hanna._

_"Are you coming?" she asked. Hanna shook her head._

_"No, I'm fine, go have fun." Amanda shrugged and walked out into the dance floor, leaving Hanna alone. After a moment Hanna pulled out her cell phone and quickly read a text from Rachel._

_"Bruce left town, have you seen him?_" _Hanna replied a 'No' back and took a sip of her drink. After a few minutes of talking to Rachel she put her phone away, just in time for someone to sit across from her at the table._

_"Hello." He spoke. He obviously was from the group of military boys who entered, due to his clean cut look. His brown hair was cut short, and he had no trace of facial hair what so ever. His eyes were a nice warm brown color, and it seemed to clash with her deep blue. He had a small smile on his face, and it was difficult for Hanna not to smile back._

_"Hey." She answered._

_"I was wondering why a gorgeous woman like you is sitting alone at a table. It seems a little strange to me." He stated. She shrugged her shoulders._

_"My friends decided they wanted to dance." She told him._

_"You don't dance?" he asked. She shook her head._

_"Not really, not like that anyway." She answered, gesturing to people bumping and grinding on each other. The man chuckled._

_"Yeah, I'm not a big fan of dancing either." He admitted._

_"So your friends dance and you pick up girls who sit alone at tables. Sounds like a plan." He laughed and shook his head._

_"Is it working so far?" he asked, moving a bit closer to her. She bit her lip lightly._

_"Maybe." She answered. He chuckled._

_"I'm Nathan, Nathan Sanders." He told her, holding out his hand for her to take. She smiled and took it._

_"Hanna Grey." She answered._

_"Pleasure to meet you." He said._

_"Same here." She told him._

* * *

"Hanna, there he is." Rachel said, pointing toward a man walking toward them. Hanna looked over and smiled widely at seeing her husband.

"Nate!" she called, leaving Rachel and running over to meet him. Nathan smiled and put his bag down on the sidewalk, ignoring the cat calls and wolf whistles coming from the Military R.V.. As soon as she got close enough he pulled her into a hug and held her tightly. He could pick up the small traces of her orange and cream shampoo, something he had sorely missed during his time in Iraq.

"I missed you." He told her, pulling away a little. She smiled up at him.

"I missed you too." She replied. He chuckled and leaned down, pressing his lips onto hers. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled herself closer to him, moving her lips slowly with his. After a moment he pulled away and hugged her once more, squeezing her a little tighter than he needed too.

"As much as I hate to break this up, your son is waiting in the house for you." Rachel said, breaking the two of them up. Hanna pulled back and smiled as Nathan leaned down and kissed her again, this time quicker.

"Alright, let's go." She said, watching as he picked up his bag, slinging it over his shoulder. He then looked at Rachel.

"Hey Ray, how's work going for you?" he asked, wrapping an arm around Hanna's waist. Rachel shrugged.

"Can't complain, I need to go back though." She told him.

"Gotham isn't getting much better, is it?" he asked. Rachel shook her head.

"No, not really. But things are looking up." Nathan raised an eyebrow.

"Really?" Hanna nodded.

"Thanks to this new Batman guy." She muttered. Nathan looked confused, but Hanna just waved it off, telling him she's tell him later.

"Alright, I've got to go, are you going to Bruce's birthday party tomorrow?" Rachel asked. Hanna shrugged.

"I'm not sure." She answered.

"Bruce, who is Bruce?" Nathan asked. Rachel rolled her eyes.

"Man, you've really missed a lot." She muttered. Nathan rolled his eyes.

"Bruce, remember I was telling you about him, he was me and Rachel's friend." A look of realization appeared on Nathan's face and he nodded.

"Yes, I do remember, I thought he was dead." He stated.

"We thought so too." Hanna mumbled.

"He's having a birthday party tomorrow, and we were invited." Nathan nodded.

"You should go, you'll have fun." He told her. Hanna shrugged her shoulders and looked at him.

"We'll figure it out later. Danny has been dying to see you." She told him. He smiled and walked into the apartment building, leaving Hanna and Rachel alone.

"So, are you going?" Rachel asked. Hanna sighed and shrugged.

"I don't know, probably not." She answered.

"Yeah, me neither." Hanna paused then looked o the ground.

"It's a bit depressing, before we three were inseparable, but now, we never even see each other. At least, not at the same time." Rachel sighed and ran a hand through he hair. She looked a the ground then looked at Hanna.

"Things change." She stated. Hanna nodded.

"Yeah, they do." She muttered. There was a brief silence.

"Alright, I'm leaving. Just try to enjoy your family while you can, okay. God knows how long Nathan is going to be here." Hanna nodded and looked back up to her apartment building window.

"Okay, I'll see you Rachel." She told her, walking into the building. As soon as she got to her apartment she heard the sound of laughter. She could tell Danny was happy to see Nate, the way he talked excitedly about school and anything that came to the top of his head. She closed the door and sat on the couch next to her husband.

"And then, I went to the museum and we say this really cool dinosaur." He chatted. Nathan smiled and pulled Danny in for another hug, which the eight year old made a face at. Nathan pulled away and smiled.

"I missed you Danny." He told his son, taking in his appearance. His chest ached a little as he realized how much he had missed of his growing up. He hated being away from his family for so long, but he wanted to help his country, and this was the best way he could do it. Danny smiled at his dad, showing one or two missing baby teeth.

"I missed you too, Daddy." He told him. Nathan smiled and kissed the top of his head, earning a groan of protest.

"What?" Nate asked.

"Daddy, only Mommy kisses me. Daddy's don't kiss big boys." Nathan laughed and looked at Hanna, who was also chuckling.

"I see, I'll remember that for next time." Danny nodded and jumped off the couch.

"Mom, can I play video games?" Danny asked. Hanna nodded.

"For a little bit." She answered.

"Thank you!" he shouted, running into his room. Hanna laughed and looked at Nate, who took his hat off and let some of his brown hair fall into his eyes. He turned toward her and smiled softly, placing a hand on her cheek.

"Are you alright?" she asked, a concern look etched on her pale face. He nodded and moved closer to her.

"Yeah, I just miss being home." He told her, his thumb stroking her cheek. The light from the window hit his eyes, showing the nice tints of green in them. She smiled upon seeing this, because it meant he was happy.

"I miss you being home too." She told him. He leaned in closer and placed his forehead against hers.

"I love you." He whispered. She smiled and bit her lip lightly.

"I love you too." She answered. He leaned in and placed his lips lightly against hers, letting them linger for a moment before pulling away. Hanna gave a heavy sigh and met her eyes with his.

"You're leaving soon, aren't you?" she asked. He nodded solemnly, causing Hanna to look down. He sighed and held her face in his hands, making her look at him.

"I'm sorry, I know we thought I'd be home a little longer this time. I'm sorry Hanna." Hanna forced a smile on her face.

"It's fine, your just doing what you can." She said. He was silent before he pushed back some of her dark locks away from her face.

"It's not fair to you, or Danny." He muttered. She shrugged.

"Only one more year right? Then you can be discharged." He nodded.

"I can't wait, I want to be here, with you, Danny, any other future family members." He said, smirking at the last part. Hanna laughed.

"You just like the part where we make the future family members." She told him.

"So what if I do, is it such a crime to want to make love to my wife?" she shook her head and wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Not at all." She whispered, kissing him deeply.

_

* * *

_

Her laugh rang out through the restaurant as he finished his story. Hanna quickly took a sip of her water, trying to curve the dry spot in the back of her throat.

_"Hanna, we've been dating for a while now, right?" Nathan asked. She noticed he was a bit jittery, something he only did when he was nervous._

_"Yeah, I suppose six months is a while." She agreed._

_"And we've met each others parents, and we've been approved by each others family. I think things are going along pretty smoothly." She nodded her head._

_"Yes, I'd say so." _

_"Right, so I just have one more question." He stated. Hanna nodded._

_"Okay." She said, showing that she wanted him to continue with the question. He took a deep breath and paused, letting his hand reach into his pocket before standing up abruptly, knocking over a glass._

_"Shit." He hissed. Hanna quickly went to pick it up, but didn't see the waiter reaching over. This caused the waiter to slam her hand down on the glass, causing her to hiss in pain and pull away._

_"Damn." She muttered, grabbing a napkin and placing it over her hand._

_"I'm terribly sorry Miss, I didn't see you there. Please, don't be upset, I'll get a ambulance." Hanna shook her head and looked at the cut, it really wasn't that bad she could probably take care of it at home. Nathan kneeled in front of her and took her hand, shooting a nasty glare at the waiter._

_"Are you sure?" he asked. She nodded._

_"May I have a band aid though?" she asked. The waiter nodded vigorously._

_"Of course, right away." He told her, walking off. Nathan took the napkin and dabbed it on her cut a few times, then pulled it away to make sure there was no more glass in it._

_"Son of a-"_

_"What were you going ask me?" asked, cutting him off. He paused for a moment._

_"Oh, it's not important now." He told her. She shook her head._

_"Come on, ask me, I promise I'll answer you truthfully." He paused and looked at the ground for a moment. Finally he looked at her and pulled out a small black velvet box. She looked at him confused until he opened it and she saw it's contents. Inside was a simple engagement ring. It was white gold and had a heart shaped three karat diamond, with a small diamond on each side._

_"Oh god." She gasped, her good hand going straight to her mouth._

_"Hanna Nicole Alicia Rose Grey, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?" he asked. She blushed and nodded, causing him to smile and place the ring on her finger. He moved up slightly and placed a long kiss on her lips, causing the restaurant to erupt in cheer. When he pulled away she shook her head._

_"Did you have to use my full name?" she asked, her tone light. He laughed and kissed her once more._

* * *

"Mrs. Sanders, what a pleasure!" Crane said upon seeing Hanna. Hanna cringed a little at hearing his voice, but regained her composure.

"Dr. Crane, good to see you again." She told him. Crane looked her up and down, taking in her appearance. She wore a long black spaghetti strap dress with a small black jacket. Her hair was curled and her make-up was done for a nice evening wear. All in all, she looked ravishing. Crane was having a difficult time keeping his own composure, forgetting about how Hanna was shifting her weight from side to side.

"Here to see your brother?" he asked. She nodded her head.

"Yes, tomorrow is his birthday and I'm spending the day with my husband and son." She told him, stressing the word husband. Crane nodded.

"Of course, well, as you can see he is being taken care of." He told her, his eyes never leaving hers. Hanna nodded. She had come today because she was told that he wasn't supposed to be in today, but apparently that wasn't' the case.

"Is that all, Hanna?" Crane asked. Hanna glared at him.

"It's Mrs. Sanders, and yes, that will be all." She snapped, turning to walk away. This caused him to frown. How dare she just walk away? Who did she think she was? Crane followed and walked next to her, leading her to the elevator.

"You know… we have a few medicines that we are in the middle of developing… would you be interested?" he asked. She stopped before he could go any further. His tone made her a bit nervous, and she no longer wished to be in the same room as him.

"No, Doctor Crane… I wouldn't." she answered, her tone faltering slightly. He smirked and moved a bit closer to her.

"What's the matter, Hanna? Do I make you uncomfortable?" he asked. She glared at him and tried to push him away from her.

"You make me sick, that's what you make me. Your insane." She said, though her voice faltered ever so slightly. He paused, a sudden build up of fury building in the pit of his stomach. He suddenly reached out and grabbed her throat with his hand, cutting of some of her air supply.

"You have no idea what insane is." He hissed. She tried to push his hand away from her throat, but was not strong enough. In a second she felt the pressure from her neck go away and she could breathe again. She looked in front of her and saw Nate punch Crane in he face, and he raised his fist again.

"Nate, stop." She croaked, her throat a little sore. Nate paused, his fist still held in mid air. He then lowered it and glared at Crane.

"You touch my wife again, and I will kill you." He hissed, his brown eyes fixed on Crane's cold baby blue. Crane was silent, but looked at Hanna once again, then back to Nate. Nate let him go and walked over to Hanna, placing an arm around her waist and walking with her out of the asylum. When they got to the car he turned to look at her, placing his hand on her cheek and checking her neck.

"Nathan I'm fine." She croaked. He gave an angry sighed and looked her in the eyes.

"Are you sure?" he asked. She nodded.

"Hanna?" a voice called. Hanna turned around and saw Rachel coming her way.

"Rachel, what are you doing here?" Hanna asked.

"I came to see Falcone, apparently he had some sudden mental breakdown." Hanna's eyebrows furrowed.

"Really, I didn't see him when I was down there." She told her. Rachel shrugged her shoulders.

"I'm not sure, I have to go, alright." She said, quickly walking away. Hanna sighed and shook her head at her friend.

"Hanna, I don't think we should go to that party." Nathan muttered, looking at the red marks on her neck. She shook her head and walked to the passenger seat of the car.

"No, I said I would go, I promised." She told him, entering the car. Nathan sighed and got in the car as well, starting it and driving away from the asylum. She quickly went through her glove box and pulled out a black scarf, which seemed to go with her outfit.

"Hon, you're going twenty miles above the speed limit." She remarked, not even sounding alarmed. Nathan looked at the speedometer and slowed down.

"Sorry, I was thinking." He confessed. She fixed her hair and looked over to her husband, placing a hand lightly on his arm.

"Are you alright?" she asked. He came to a red light and sighed, fixing the tie on his suit. He turned to her.

"Do we really have to wear such fancy outfits, for a birthday party?" he asked. She chuckled and shook her head.

"You'd be surprised, this is Bruce Wayne we're talking about. I doubt Alfred would have left it at a casual affair." She told him. He sighed and began driving once more. After about a half an hour of silence he spoke again.

"Are you sure you're okay?" he asked. She nodded her head.

"I'm sure it will hurt later, but I'm fine. I was just taken by surprise." He gripped the steering wheel and glared at the road.

"Son of a bitch, I should have killed him." He muttered.

"Nate, don't worry about it-"

"Don't worry about it? Hanna, he could have killed you!" she sighed.

"Things like that happen all the time in this city." She told him.

"Then maybe we shouldn't be in this city." She looked at him.

"What?" she asked. He looked at her in the corner of his eye.

"I don't want to start a fight, I'm just saying that maybe this isn't the best place for us." Hanna rolled her eyes.

"Things are looking up." Nathan rolled his eyes and came to another stop light.

"Hanna, come on."

"Nathan, we both have lived in Gotham our whole lives. My work is here, my friends are here, Danny's friends are here. Both our families are here, honestly, can we really leave Gotham?" she asked. Nathan sighed.

"No, you're right. I'm sorry, this place is just getting rough." He muttered. They pulled up into Wayne manor, which was lit in bright lights, even when it was only twilight.

"Not that rough apparently." She stated. He pulled into a parking space and they got out of the car and began to walk to the mansion. Hanna took hold of his hand and gave it a squeeze, smiling up at his tall 6'3" stature. He looked down at her and kissed her forehead lightly.

"I love you." He told her.

"I love you too, but it's only a birthday party." She reminded. He laughed and they walked up to the bouncer, showing him their invitation. He nodded and they walked in, taking a look at the large group of people.

"Talk about the trust fund brigade." Nate muttered. Hanna smacked his arm playfully and looked at him.

"Be nice." She told him, smiling.

"Miss Grey!" a voice called. Hanna looked over and saw a familiar older man walked over, smiling brightly at her.

"Alfred!" she replied, walking over to him and hugging him, making him pause in shock. He quickly hugged her back and then pulled away, looking at her.

"Miss Grey, it is a pleasure to see you once more." He said.

"Same here, but it's actually Mrs. Sanders now. Though I'd prefer if you called me Hanna." She told him. He smiled warmly at her.

"Oh yes, I'm sorry, I heard about you getting married. You have a son as well, do you not?" he asked. Hanna nodded and looked over to her left, where her husband had appeared and was looking at Alfred.

"Alfred, this is my husband, Nathan Sanders. Nate, this is Alfred Pennyworth, an old friend of mine. He used to catch us when we were up to no good." She told him, smiling softly. Alfred chuckled and shook Nathan's hand.

"It's a pleasure to meet you. Master Wayne should be around soon enough." Hanna's eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

"He's not here?" she asked.

"He had some business that he had to attend to, he will be back though." Hanna nodded and looked around. Behind all the party decorations, she could still sense the old feeling the manor gave off and it resurfaced a few old memories buried deep in her mind. She looked back at Alfred.

"I need to leave, but enjoy yourselves." Alfred said, walking away. Hanna gently pulled Nathan away from the door and into a open room.

"Hey Hanna." Nathan started. Hanna looked over at Nathan.

"Yeah?" she asked.

"Where is the bathroom, I need to freshen up." He told her.

"Oh, um… around the corner and to your left, if that one is being used there is another one upstairs and your right. And then about fifty more around here somewhere." She told him. He chuckled and leaned down to give her a quick kiss before walking off. Hanna sighed and grabbed a glass of champagne from a tray and took a sip, letting the taste linger in her mouth before gulping it down.

"Nervous?" a voice asked. She turned around and gave a small smile.

"Uh, no, not really. Do I look nervous?" she asked. He gave a small nod.

"A little." She blushed.

"It's been a while since I've been to a party like this." She confessed. He nodded, some of his light brown hair moving a bit with the head movement.

"I see, are you a friend of Mr. Wayne's?" he asked.

"I believe so." He looked confused.

"You are not sure?" he asked. She shrugged.

"I'm an old friend, I think he forgets that." She confessed. He nodded and put down his own glass of champagne, though it didn't even look like he touched it.

"Henri Ducard, you must be Miss Grey." She looked a bit taken back.

"Uh, Mrs. Sanders, formally known as Miss Grey. How did you say you knew Bruce?" she asked, looking at him skeptically.

"I met him while he was traveling around. He spoke of you and Miss Dawes often." He stated. She nodded her head.

"Nice to meet you, Mr. Ducard." He smirked.

"Same here Mrs. Sanders." She gave a small nod and looked over when a bunch of people began to applaud and sing. She saw Bruce walk into the middle of the room and smile politely at the group, though the smile seemed forced.

"He has arrived." She muttered. She took another sip of her drink and grabbed another one, chugging that down and finishing that one right as Bruce finished.

"Eager to see him once more?" Henri asked. She rolled her eyes.

"Excuse me, I need to find my husband before he get's lost." She told him.

"Till we meet again, Mrs. Sanders." She smiled and walked toward the bathroom, bumping into someone on the way.

"Oh, I'm sorry." She apologized, turning to look at the one she bumped in.

"Hanna! You made it!" Bruce said, smiling brightly at her. She forced a smile on.

"Bruce, nice party." She remarked. He looked around and nodded.

"It is, isn't it." He muttered.

"Happy birthday, before I forget." She told him. He smirked.

"Thank you, I'm glad you made it. I haven't seen you in a while." He told her. She nodded and looked to the floor.

"Yeah, sorry, I've been busy." She stated. He nodded.

"I bet, with taking care of your son by yourself and all."

"She Isn't by herself." A voice cut in. Hanna looked over and saw Nathan make it to her side. She smiled at him.

"Hey, you get lost?" she asked. He smirked.

"Only for a moment." He admitted. Bruce stepped forward.

"Bruce Wayne." He stated holding out his hand.

"Nathan Sanders." Nate replied, shaking his hand firmly. Hanna watched the two men squeeze each others hands for a moment before breaking them apart by placing a hand on Nate's shoulder.

"Bruce, this is my husband. He is on leave from military duty for a few weeks." She told him. Bruce nodded.

"Nice too meet you." He told him curtly.

"Same here, Hanna speaks very highly of you." Nate told him. Bruce looked at her for a moment before looking back at Nate.

"Really? I'm surprised." Nate's eyebrows furrowed together. Hanna's did as well.

"Why would you be surprised?" Nate asked.

"Well, I didn't leave for Princeton on good terms." Bruce explained. A look of realization came to Hanna's face as she realized what he was talking about. She looked down and tried to find the right words, but was having difficulty with her husband being next to her. When she looked up Bruce had a somber look on his face.

"Bruce, I…" She trailed off when she felt a buzzing in her purse. She sighed and quickly pulled out her phone and answered it. "Hello?"

_"Hanna, I'm sorry to ruin your night, but Danny has a high fever and is asking for you."_ She heard her mother say. She sighed.

"Alright, we're leaving." She answered hanging up her phone. Nathan looked down at her.

"Is everything alright?" he asked. She shook her head.

"Danny has a fever, we should go." She answered, looking back at Bruce.

"I hope you had a good time." Bruce told them.

"Thank you for inviting us." Nathan replied. Hanna looked at Bruce and gave a small smile, but it didn't reach her eyes.

"Happy Birthday Bruce." She said, taking her husbands hand and walking with him out of the party.

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**_Wow that was long. Rate and Review!!! I loves them!!_**


	4. Chapter 4

_**Blah, I figured I'd post as much as I could before Band Camp starts (Which is soon). Ugh, Band Camp, can't say I'm exactly excited, Band Camp sucks. Marching band is fun though, I love performing… the only reason I go through Band Camp Hell.**_

_**ANYWAY!!! Thanks again to everyone who was nice enough to add to favorites and all. I appreciate it.**_

**Disclaimer: I do not own Batman, they belong to DC comics and Batman Begins and the Dark Knight both Belong to Christopher Nolan. I own neither of these things. I do claim to own Hanna, Nathan, and Danny. I also created the plot. Please don't steal.**

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Music was blaring as people were dancing in the small cramped living room. Hanna sat on the kitchen counter next to Rachel, sipping on her alcoholic drink and laughing. It was obvious she was close to being drunk, due to her slurring and constant laughter. Rachel wasn't too drunk, but she was tipsy.

_"Where is Bruce?" Aaron asked. Rachel shrugged her shoulders._

_"I'm not sure, forget about Bruce, let's dance." She told him. Hanna watched as they walked off together and took another sip of her drink. She glanced over at her date, who was now passed out on the floor. She shook her head and leaned against the cabinet, closing her eyes and letting the beat of the music float to her ears._

_"Hanna." A voice called. She opened her eyes and looked at Bruce, who was now right in front of her, drunk as well._

_"Bruce, what happened to Amy?" she asked._

_"Alice, and she decided that Robert Santos was probably better for fucking." He told her. She shrugged and took another sip._

_"Her loss." She muttered. He nodded and sat next to her, grabbing her cup and taking a sip. She glared at him._

_"Hey, bitch, give that back!" she snapped._

_"Come on, share." He whined. She rolled her eyes and took her drink back._

_"No, you want to get drunk, find your own drink." She told him. His gaze didn't leave hers. He wasn't sure if it was the amount of alcohol in his system, or his teenage hormones, but for the first time ever he felt that he finally realized she was a young woman. A very attractive young woman at that._

_"I just like the taste of it really." He confessed. She drank some of the fruity concoction and then, very arrogantly, lightly breathed in his face. He paused as the fruity smell of her drink made it through his nostrils and lingered there for a moment._

_"There you go, there is your taste." She stated. He rolled his eyes and went to grab her cup. He eventually got it, and went to take a large gulp. She smirked when she saw his reaction to a empty cup, and jumped off the counter. He looked up and glared at her._

_"That's no fair, I only wanted a taste." She shrugged._

_"Tough luck, maybe you should be faster next time." She stated. He glared and jumped off the counter, causing her to take off up the stairs. She ran down the hallway until she found a open door and ran inside trying to close the door. Bruce easily pushed himself through the door, causing her to shriek and jump back and fall on the bed in the room. He laughed and jumped on top of her, causing her to laugh. He smiled at her laugh and then paused, meeting her eyes and gazing deep into them._

_Hanna met his gaze as well, trying to figure out the sudden fire in his brown eyes. She realized the position they were in and blushed a deep red. His hips were right on top of hers, making his body practically aligned right on top of her. He had a hand on each side of her face, keeping most of his weight off of her small frame._

_"I just wanted a taste." He whispered. A confused look became etched on her face until he leaned down and pressed his lips to hers. She took in a sudden breath and grabbed onto his shirt and arched her back. He groaned and continued to move his lips against hers passionately, then finally reached down with one hand to lift off her shirt and threw it to the floor. It was only a mater of time before the rest of their clothes followed._

* * *

"Mommy!" a voice called. Hanna averted her attention from the window and walked into her sons room.

"Danny, what's wrong honey?" she asked, placing a hand on his forehead.

"What's going on? Grandma said something was wrong in the city." He mumbled. Hanna pressed her lips together as she tried to find the answers. She wasn't sure what was going on, but it was obvious chaos had erupted in the Narrows. They were pretty far from the Narrows, so they really didn't have much to worry about.

"Nothing that concerns us, just try and get some sleep baby." She told him, kissing his forehead. She left the room and sat down on the couch next to her husband. He looked over at her and took her hand in his, giving it a light squeeze.

"The problem has left the Narrows, it's effecting other parts in the city now. They are asking for everyone to stay indoors." He told her. She sighed and leaned against Nathan, closing her eyes to stop the tears from falling.

"Gotham is turning itself inside out, and there is nothing we can do about it." She muttered sadly. He pulled her onto his lap and held her close, kissing the side of her head lightly and letting it linger there for a moment.

"I love you." He whispered. She looked at him and let her fingers trace over his small stubble forming.

"I love you too." She replied, kissing him deeply. After a moment there was a loud boom, causing Hanna to jump. Nathan kept a firm grip on her to keep her from falling.

"What the fuck?" he asked, moving her to the couch and standing up near the window. She followed and looked right at the monorail no too far away. It seemed someone had blown out a support beam and had let a large section fall to the ground.

"Oh my god, the train is going straight for it." She muttered. Nathan watched as a figure cloaked in black flew out of the back and glided away. Hanna watched in horror as the monorail flew right of the track and blew up. Nathan quickly covered her eyes from the explosion so the bright light wouldn't hurt her eyes. After a minute the broke away, surveying the damage of the explosion.

"It doesn't look like anyone is hurt." She muttered.

"Mom! Dad!" a cry called. Hanna practically sprinted into the room the second she heard his calling. As soon as she entered the room she kneeled down next to her son.

"What' wrong?" she asked quietly.

"I heard a loud bang and got scared." He cried. She pulled him into a hug.

"It's okay, nothing is wrong, I promise." She told him, rocking back and forth. She heard the phone ring off in the distance, but ignored it. She rubbed Danny's back, trying to calm him down. She heard Nathan arguing with whoever was on the phone, but couldn't make out what he was saying. After a moment she could hear Danny's steady breathing, and knew he was finally asleep. She laid him back down and walked into the living room, where she saw Nathan slam the phone down onto the cradle. She crossed her arms and watched as he paced the small living room.

"Is everything alright?" she asked. He sighed and looked at her, his brown eyes making her warm up instantly.

"The staff sergeant called, my division is leaving early." Her face fell slightly, but she nodded in understanding.

"So you have to leave." She muttered. He walked over to her and pulled her into a hug, holding her close to him. Something in the pit of her stomach made her feel uneasy about him leaving. Of course every time he left she was worried, but this time was different, this time she had a uneasy feeling that he was not coming back.

"It's not going to be too long, and after a year I'm done. Then we can finally start living our lives normally, well, as normal as we can get in Gotham." She nodded and bit her bottom lip a little.

"I know, I just hate when you leave. It doesn't feel right." She explained. He pulled away a little and held her face in his hands and pressed his forehead against hers.

"I love you, you know that right?" she nodded.

"Of course, and I love you too." She said. He kissed her quickly and pulled away.

"What about Bruce?" he asked. She pulled away and looked at him, a confused and shocked look on her face.

"What?" she asked.

"Never mind." He muttered, walking away and sitting on the couch.

"What does Bruce have to do with this?" she asked, crossing her arms.

"Nothing, Hanna, never mind." He told her. Hanna rolled her eyes and walked toward the window, gazing out as the fire department began to try and put out the fire. Nathan sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

"Nathan, what happened between me and Bruce was nothing, it was one moment of weakness." She mumbled.

"But you loved him, you even admitted that yourself." He told her. She turned toward him, running a hand through her own hair.

"He never loved me though, it was one sided. I don't see what that matters now." She snapped. He stood up.

"Because he's back! You let go of him because he died, but now that he is back things have changed." she rolled her eyes and turned toward the window.

"The only thing that has changed, is the fact that I realize that I love you more than I could ever love him." She told him. He sighed and walked up behind her, placing a hand on her shoulder.

"Hanna, I think we both know that's not true." He said softly. She pressed her lips together and looked up at him.

"I'm here, aren't I? I'm married to you, I carried your son, and I have been faithful to you since the day you asked me out for our first date. What makes you think I don't love you?" she asked, tears stinging her eyes. Nathan sighed and wiped away a few tears that had fallen.

"I'm sorry, you're right. I just don't want to loose you." He muttered. She smiled and brushed some of his hair away.

"You wont loose me, I'll be yours until we take our final breaths together." She told him. He smiled and kissed her deeply.

"I love you." She chuckled.

"I love you too."

_

* * *

_

"Hey Nate, is your girl coming to see you off?" Shawn asked. Nathan looked up from his bag and shrugged.

_"Probably not, we were up late last night, I didn't want to wake her." He said, looking down at his bag once again._

_"What a shame, I would've liked to see that nice piece of ass again." Alex muttered. Nathan punched him in the arm and glared at him._

_"That piece of ass is my fiancée." He hissed. All the boys paused and then chuckled. Ryan was the first to speak._

_"Nathan Sanders is finally settling down." He laughed._

_"Who would have thought." Jackson muttered. Nathan rolled his eyes and finished making his bead._

_"So, what is it about that chick that made you do it. You went from Womanizer, to an engaged man. How did she do it?" Reeve asked. Nathan shrugged his shoulders,_

_"I don't know, I just know she's the one." He muttered. Kyle rolled his eyes at him._

_"Man, you're the first one of us to get married. That sucks." He said. Nathan rolled his own eyes and grabbed his bag, walking out with the rest of them._

_"I don't think so." He whispered._

_"Well, some Fiancée, she didn't even show up to see you off." Shawn muttered, walking onto the air force plane. Nathan watched as every one walked onto the plane, he paused for a moment, then went to board the plane._

_"Nathan!" a voice shouted. He stopped and looked behind him, smiling as he saw her running toward him. He dropped his bag and ran toward her, ignoring the protests of his friends on the plane. As soon as he met her he scooped her up into his arms and twirled her around. She held onto him tightly and buried her face in his neck._

_"Hanna, I'm glad you made it." He confessed, placing her back down on the ground. He pulled away and placed a hand on her cheek, brushing away a few tears._

_"I wish you would have woken me up earlier, I wanted to say goodbye." She told him. He smiled and kissed her deeply._

_"I'll be back, I promise." He said softly. She bit her bottom lip and looked up at him._

_"Be safe, please." She begged. He pulled her into a hug and kissed her forehead, taking in the scent of her hair._

_"I will, as long as you'll be here when I come back. Please." She nodded._

_"Always."_

* * *

He held her close for a moment longer, letting her warmth fill him up. He could feel her silent tears on his shirt, but ignored them for the moment. He pulled away and looked into her deep blue eyes, getting lost for only a moment.

"I'll be back, I promise." He whispered. She nodded and wiped away a tear.

"I know you will." She answered. He smiled and kneeled down to Danny's level and ruffled his hair a bit.

"You be good for you're mom, you hear?" he asked. Danny nodded his head.

"Okay." He mumbled. Nate smiled and pulled him into a hug, giving him a squeeze.

"I'll be back soon, buddy, I love you." He whispered. Danny gave him a small squeeze as well before answering.

"I love you too, Dad." He replied. Nathan pulled away and kissed the top of his head. He then stood up and looked down at his wife, who forced a smile on her lips.

"Be safe." She ordered. He smiled and pulled her into an embrace, giving her a quick, but loving, kiss. He pulled away and gave her another hug.

"Sergeant Sanders, we're ready to leave." A voice cut in. He pulled away and sighed looking over his life once more.

"Goodbye." He told her, kissing her quickly. He kissed Danny on the top of the head, despite his groan off protest.

"Bye." Hanna muttered. He smiled and turned toward the plane, walking off and disappearing from view. Hanna waited for another moment before grabbing her sons hand and leading him back to the car.

"Mommy, is Daddy going to come home soon?" Danny asked, sitting himself in the back seat. Hanna sat herself in the front and looked at him in the rearview mirror.

"Hopefully, we can only pray." She admitted. He looked out the window, not totally understand what his mother was trying to tell him. After a half an hour or so they finally pulled in front of their apartment building.

"Momma, what's for dinner?" Danny asked, jumping out of the old SUV.

"I'll probably order some pizza, how does that sound?" she asked, running a hand through his hair.

"Sounds good." He remarked. She smiled and opened up the door, watching as he ran into the living room, grabbing his soccer ball and turning on the television. She chuckled lightly and walked into the kitchen, going through some mail on the counter. Not even five minutes later there was a knock on the door, which caused her to jump.

"I got it!" Danny called, running to the door. Hanna placed one or two pieces of junk mail down on the counter and opened up one addressed from the doctors at Arkham. She silently hoped it was news telling her that they had found her brother.

"Hanna." A voice stated. Hanna looked up and froze as she saw Bruce Wayne enter her kitchen, Danny standing right next to him.

"Mom, you said he was your friend, right?" Danny asked. Hanna nodded.

"Uh, yeah, come on in Bruce." Bruce smiled and walked in a little more into the kitchen. Danny paused for a moment and then ran off into the living room. Hanna shifted her weight a little before pulling out a chair at the kitchen table.

"I'm sorry, you can sit if you want." She told him. He nodded and unbuttoned his suit jacket, making it obvious that he had just come off from work. Hanna felt a little underdressed with her jeans and tank top. Bruce sat down, and Hanna sat down across from him.

"I'm sorry to just drop in like this, but I wanted to know if you were okay." He told her. Her eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

"Uh, yeah, why wouldn't I be?" she asked, moving her mail to the side of the table. Bruce shrugged and lightly tapped the table with his fingers.

"I don't know, Rachel told me about your husband, I was just wondering. Plus I was in the neighborhood, and it's nice to get away from all the trust fund people." He said. She nodded and leaned back in her chair, letting her flats slip off her feet a little.

"I see, well, there really isn't much going on, I'm pretty much just lying around." She explained. There was a loud crash from the living room, causing Bruce to jump up and clench his fists. Hanna raised an eyebrow, but didn't say anything. There was a pause before Danny came running into the room.

"Mom, I didn't mean to do it, I was just playing with the ball and it fell into the entertainment center." He said, his eyes watering up. Hanna sighed and stood up, walking into the living room to survey the damage. She ran a hand through he hair when she saw he had broke then glass door on the system, and one or two picture frames had fallen off the wall opposite of the T.V..

"I'm sorry mom." Danny muttered. Hanna looked at her son, a stern glare fixed upon her face.

"Go to your room, no video games or T.V., you can come out when it's dinner time." Danny's eyes went wide.

"But mom!" he protested.

"No, you know you're not supposed to play with your soccer ball in the house. Go." She scolded. He sighed but stomped off into his room, closing the door and muttering some words under his breath. Hanna sighed and turned around, bumping right into Bruce.

"I'm sorry." Bruce said quickly. She shook her head, letting some dark locks fall out of her messy ponytail.

"It's fine, I just have to clean this up." She told him, grabbing a broom and dust pan. She went back to the living room and began to carefully pick up the pieces.

"Do you need help?" he asked. She shook her head.

"No, but I do need someone to order Pizza, do you mind?" she asked. He shook his head and pulled out his cell phone.

"Uh, who do I call?" he asked. She looked up at him and raised an eyebrow.

"Um, the pizza place." He still looked lost.

"What's the number?" she sighed.

"There is a menu on the counter, just call there and order a Pizza or two." She stated. Bruce nodded and quickly made the call, he had found her address on a old piece of mail. When he was done he saw Hanna was practically finished.

"Wow, that was quick." He mumbled.

"I've been doing this for a while." She stated. He nodded.

"Yeah, I suppose you have been." She threw the trash away and walked back out into the living room. Bruce sighed and placed the phone on the table, catching a glance at a letter written from Arkham Asylum. He didn't get a chance to read it all, since he could hear her footsteps coming back into the room, but he did catch a name 'Mathew Nickolas Grey.' Something constricted in his chest as he remembered the name all too well. He had no idea Matt was in Arkham, before he left he was under the impression that Matt was married and his wife was pregnant with their second child.

"Bruce?" Hanna asked. Bruce turned around, the feeling in his chest worsening when he saw her. He had left so much behind when he went around the world. He didn't even think about what he had missed, not only in his life and Rachel's, but in Hanna's as well. He felt as if he had let his best friend down.

"Hanna." He replied. She raised an eyebrow and walked up to him, grabbing the phone and letter. She glanced down at it and walked over to the kitchen counter, placing it down and turning back to him.

"You order the pizza?" she asked. He nodded.

"Hanna, what happened to Matt?" he asked, cutting right to the chase.

"Are you going through my mail?" she asked. He paused for a minute, taking in her angry glare.

"I saw it on the table. You're avoiding my question." He stated. She pressed her lips together and stared at him for a moment. He did have a right to know, he had been decent friends with Matt before he left, it didn't seem fair to not tell him what happened.

"Fine, you better sit down." She told him. He sat down at the table and looked at her, watching as she went into the fridge and pulled out a soda. She offered him one and he took it, giving a small thank you. There was a silence as they sat across from each other, and Bruce watched as she lightly traced circles on the table, a habit she had even when they were kids.

"Hanna, what happened when I was gone?" He asked. Hanna sighed and looked up at him, her blue eyes meeting his warm brown.

"I don't know where to start." She muttered.

"Start from when I left." He told her. She bit her bottom lip lowly and began tracing circles once more.

"Well, the city was already bad when you left, and it wasn't getting much better. They were starting to buy off cops in the force, and were starting on detectives. Matt had just gotten promoted to a detective and found out what they were up too. He was going to go to the commissioner, but they got to him first." She stopped, looking down. Bruce watched her intently, trying to see what she was going to do next.

"Who are 'they'?" he asked softly. She sighed.

"Falcone's men. They were actually going to kill him." She stated.

"But they didn't?" he asked. She nodded.

"I suppose Crane got to him, giving him a dose of the horrible medicine. Mattie has been in there ever since, well, till recently. Apparently he escaped during that little escapade that happened a few weeks ago and they haven't found him yet." She muttered. He reached over the table and took her hand in his, causing her to freeze up.

"I'm sorry Hanna." He whispered. She pulled her hand away, causing Bruce's face to fall even more than it already had.

"It's fine, Olivia and the kids suffer much more than I do. Not to mention my mom fell to pieces afterwards." She said. Bruce nodded. He faintly recalled Olivia, Mathew's wife, and their daughter, Kelly.

"Did Olivia give birth to her second child?" Bruce asked. Hanna nodded.

"Yeah, Mathew Nickolas Grey Junior. He was born after Matt became crazy." She confessed. Bruce's chest tightened slightly, but he tried not to let it bother him.

"Are they still in the city?" he asked. Hanna shook her head.

"They moved out to San Diego, where her family lives." Bruce looked down at the table, taking it all in and mulling it over.

"So much has changed, it's a little strange." He mused aloud. Hanna nodded and ran a hand through her hair.

"It's not so strange when you're actually here to live through it." She stated. He looked up, his brown eyes meeting her deep blue.

"I'm sorry, Hanna, I haven't been a good friend lately." He admitted. She was silent for a moment, not confirming nor denying his statement.

"The past is already set in stone, you can only change what your future may hold Bruce. You shouldn't be sorry for what already happened, just try and fix things you want to fix for the future." She told him. It was his turn to be silent, as he gazed at the woman in front of him. She was no longer the immature, party loving, selfish teenager she once was. She no was a mature, conservative, and selfless woman, who was taking care of her family despite her hardships. He doubted he could do the same.

"You have changed, so much. I can't believe I just realized it." He said softly.

"You've changed too, I can't always see it, but I catch glimpses of it every now and then." She told him. He looked confused.

"What do you mean?" he asked. She sighed and bit her lip lightly.

"I don't know, I just have a feeling that this playboy, drunken billionaire, thing you have going on is a bit of a playboy act. But I'm not sure. As Rachel says, it's what you do that defines you." She said. Bruce didn't say anything. There was a knock on he door and Hanna stood up, grabbing her wallet and answering the door. Bruce glanced out the window, seeing it was quite dark out. He sighed as the newly formed bat signal was alit, meaning he should most likely leave. He stood up just as Hanna entered.

"I'm sorry, I need to leave." He told her. She placed the pizza on the table and looked at him, nodding her head.

"Okay, thanks for stopping by." She told him, holding out her hand. He ignored her hand and pulled her into a hug, surprising himself and her. He pulled away and smiled down at her, trying not to look surprised.

"Take care Hanna." He said, turning and walking out of the door. Hanna paused for a minute, scratching the back of her head before turning back to the pizza.

"Danny, dinner is ready!" she called, getting some dinner ready for her son and forgetting about Bruce's fair well hug.

_**

* * *

**_

Reviews are nice. Hope you Enjoyed it.


	5. Chapter 5

_**I… have nothing interesting to say here. I'm a little tired from band. Really, all we're doing is music today, though we'll probably have drill tomorrow. But we did learn Thriller today! The first time our band has played something other than the basic rah-rah tunes and Rocky. Le sigh.**_

_**Thank you for everyone who reviewed and out on their alerts of favorites list. It really makes me feel all nice inside.**_

**Disclaimer: I do not own Batman, nor the Dark Knight. I do own Hanna and the plot. Don't steal.**

_

* * *

_

Hanna's eyes fluttered open as she slowly began to gain consciousness, but soon closed them when the light blinded her. She gave a sigh as she rolled over and laid her head on a rather warm, and hard, pillow. After a moment she realized that the pillow was moving up and down, and had an arm wrapped around her waist. She lifted her head up a little, blinking a few times to be able see clearly, but when she did, she wished she was still sleeping.

_Her 'pillow' was none other than Bruce Wayne, who was still fast sleep. His hair was askew, and his mouth was open slightly, causing him to snore a little. The comforter was placed very low on his body, barely covering his 'assets.' It did show that his lacrosse practice had come in handy. Hanna sat up a little more, noticing that she was slightly sore down in her private area. She pushed back a few strands of her hair as memories of last night flooded back to her._

_She quickly pulled the under sheet close to her body, as if it would matter at that point, and quickly looked around the room for her clothes, finding her under wear and jeans quickly. She slipped them on quickly, trying to be careful of her sensitive area. She found her bra and put it on, now looking for her shirt. She went to lift Bruce's pants off the floor when the door opened, causing Bruce to startle awake._

_"Hey, can you guys, like, leave. My parents are coming home in three hours and I have to clean the place." Chase asked. There was a pause._

_"Yeah, sure, no problem." Hanna answered, causing Chase to take a closer look at her. After a moment he smirked and looked at Bruce, who was looking around the room confused._

_"Way to go man, she's hot." Chase stated, then left the room. Bruce's eyebrows furrowed as he looked at Hanna, and took in her appearance of standing in front of him with nothing but jeans and a bra on. A look of realization came to his face as he quickly stood up, and forgetting to cover up his bottom half._

_"Hanna, I'm so sorry." Hanna quickly grew red and turned around, trying to toss his jeans over her shoulder._

_"It's fine, just put some pants on." She stated. She heard him fumble around and finally heard the sound of a zipper._

_"I'm done." He told her. She turned around and quickly began looking for her shirt._

_"Hey, if you see my shirt, can you give it to me?" she asked, avoiding his gaze. He said nothing at first, but then stepped toward her. She froze for a second, but continued to search._

_"Hanna, listen, I'm so sorry about last night, I wasn't thinking straight. I didn't mean to hurt you or anything. I didn't honestly think that you were, well, a, um…" he trailed off. She stopped searching and looked at him._

_"A virgin?" she asked. He nodded his head._

_"Yeah, listen I'm so sorry." He apologized. She paused and looked at him._

_"You're sorry?" she asked softly. He nodded._

_"Please forgive me." He whispered. She rolled her eyes and found her shirt._

_"Nothing to forgive." She told him, slipping her shirt on. She searched around the room for her shoes and socks._

_"Are you sure, I feel really bad." She looked at him, her eyes narrowing._

_"Bruce, for the last time, stop feeling sorry. There is nothing to be sorry about." She snapped. He paused for a moment, watching as she put on her shoes._

_"You're not mad at me?" he asked. She sighed and looked at him._

_"I am now." She snapped, standing up and fixing her hair a little._

_"Why now?" Bruce asked confounded. She turned toward her and glared, crossing her arms and pressing her lips together._

_"Because, you just gave me the best night I could possibly have, drunk or not, and you are sitting her apologizing. I'm sorry that it is something you regret, but I don't regret it. I could have not picked a better person to have given myself to for the first time, I'm sorry you feel differently." She snapped._

_"Wouldn't you rather have done it with someone you love?" he asked._

_"I do love you! Jesus Bruce, I've loved you for three fucking years. You've just been too wrapped up in Rachel to actually see." She hissed. He froze at her statement, and stared straight into her eyes. After a moment, he spoke._

_"I'm sorry." He mumbled. Hanna rolled her eyes and walked past him and out the door, leaving Bruce alone in the room._

* * *

"So, Rachel, who is this new guy?" Hanna asked. Rachel smiled shyly as she watched Danny run back and forth on the soccer field.

"His name is Harvey, he's trying to become the next district attorney." Rachel said. Hanna nodded and cheered as Danny maid a goal.

"Good, you need to get a boyfriend." Hanna stated, taking a sip of her water. Rachel nodded and clapped when Danny stole the ball from another player.

"I do, don't I?" she muttered. Hanna nodded.

"To be honest, I thought you and Bruce were going to get together." Hanna said, her eyes still watching her son. Rachel was silent for a moment.

"Bruce and I can't be together." She muttered. Hanna looked at her confused, taking her eyes off her son for the first time.

"Why?" she asked. Rachel sighed.

"He's not the same guy I remember, he's too different." She told her. Hanna nodded and looked back to the little league soccer game.

"He has changed." she agreed. There was a silence between them before Rachel turned toward her.

"Have you heard from Nate?" she asked. Hanna sighed as a familiar clenching feeling in her chest returned, making her bite her lower lip.

"No, I haven't. I'm getting a little worried, it isn't like him not to call, I mean it's been almost four months." She replied. Rachel sighed and watched Danny kick the winning goal. Hanna cheered and walked off the stands, Rachel right behind her.

"Rachel!" a voice called. Rachel and Hanna turned around to come face to face with Harvey Dent. Rachel smiled and let her pale blue eyes light up.

"Harvey, what are you doing here?" she asked.

"I came to check out Gotham's parks, you know, to see if they need any renovation. What are you doing here?" he asked.

"I'm here to see my godson play." She explained. He smiled.

"I didn't know you had a godson." He muttered. She smiled and gestured over to Hanna, who smiled at Harvey.

"This is Hanna Sanders, my best friend." Rachel introduced.

"And mother of her godson." Hanna continued, shaking Harvey's hand. Harvey smiled widely at her.

"It's a pleasure to meet you." He told her.

"Likewise."

"Mom, Mom, did you see me? Did you see me?" Danny cried, holding his soccer ball. Hanna smiled and kneeled down, hugging him tightly.

"I did see you, you did great Danny." She told him, kissing his cheek. He made a face but didn't say anything else.

"I see a future David Beckham in the future." Rachel told him, making him smile brightly.

"You really think so?" he asked.

"Of course, I haven't see anyone that talented at little league soccer ever." Harvey stated. Danny smiled, despite not knowing who he was.

"Thank you." He said.

"Danny, this is Rachel's friend, Harvey, Harvey this is my son, Danny." Harvey held out his hand for Danny to shake, which he did.

"Nice to meet you Danny." Danny smiled politely.

"Same here. Mom, can I get a hotdog?" Danny asked, turning toward Hanna. Hanna nodded and walked over with him to the hotdog stand.

"Hey, Hanna, Harvey and I are going to go. I'll see you later, okay?" Rachel asked. Hanna nodded and waved goodbye, then turned back to her son. An hour later, the two found themselves sitting in front of the T.V. in the living room.

"Mom, can I get that?" Danny asked. Hanna looked up from her laptop at the T.V., where a commercial for a new video game was advertised.

"We'll see." She told him. He sighed and continued to watch T.V.. There was a sudden knock on her door and she put her laptop to the side. Danny didn't even bother getting up, his eyes were glued on the television set. Hanna shook her head and opened her door. She froze when she saw who was in front of her.

"Mrs. Sanders?" one man asked, taking off his hat. She took in both their military uniforms and felt her chest tighten. She looked between the two of them.

"Yes." She answered.

"I'm Major Reynolds, this is Captain Marshall. We were stationed with your husband in Iraq, Ma'am." She nodded her head slowly, her hands trembling a little as she shook both their hands. She already knew what they were here to tell her.

"How can I help you?" she asked, her voice quiet. Major Reynolds gave her a sympathetic look and handed her a envelope. She took it and quickly opened it, reading only the first three lines before letting out a shaky breath.

"We're very sorry Ma'am." He told her. She shook her head and covered her mouth to hold back a sob. After a few minutes she was able to some what compose herself to speak once more.

"How… how did he… um, how did it, uh, happen?" she asked, tears streaming down her face. Captain Marshall was the one to speak.

"A hidden bomber, Sergeant Sanders saw him before any of us did and tackled him down a hill. He saved out whole regiment Ma'am." Hanna leaned against the doorframe and ran a hand through her hair.

"Um, thank you, Major, Captain, but I think I should talk to my son." She told them. Major Reynolds glanced into the living room where he saw the young boy glance up at them. Major Reynolds looked back at her.

"Of course Ma'am, we're sorry for your loss, he was a great man."

"Wonderful soldier." Captain Marshall continued. She forced a smile on her face.

"Thank you." She told them. They nodded and left, letting her close the door. The minute she did she placed her forehead against the door and let a few tears stream down her face. She took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down.

"Mom?" she heard a voice ask. She wiped away a few tears and turned around to where Danny was standing in front of her.

"Honey, I need to talk to you." She told him.

"It's about Dad, isn't it," Hanna nodded as her chest tightened at the look on his face. "He isn't coming home, is he." A lump formed in Hanna's throat as she nodded her head.

"No, he isn't."

_

* * *

_

She closed her eyes as she heard his deep and steady breathing. His hand lightly ran over her dark silk locks. The rain poured down, giving Gotham a very somber feeling, but she was very peaceful at this moment. Nathan kissed the top of her head as his hand traveled down to her swollen stomach, and a smile grew on his lips.

_"I love you." He told her. She smiled and looked up at him._

_"I love you too." She told him. He kissed her lightly and let his hand linger from her hair to her cheek, stroking her pale ivory skin._

_"Can you believe we've only been together about two years?" he asked, chuckling softly. She smiled._

_"It's hard to believe we've been able to stand each other for so long." He laughed and nodded._

_"Sometimes, it's difficult." She shrugged._

_"So are most things in life." She muttered. He rubbed her stomach a little and smiled._

_"I'm going to be a dad." He told her, causing her to laugh._

_"I know, you dork, I was there too." He rolled his eyes and leaned his head back._

_"I hope I can get home in time to see him born. I would like to see my son." She nodded and looked at him._

_"As long as you are safe over there, we should have no problem. Don't you dare leave me alone to take care of this baby Nathan Andrew Sanders." She warned. He looked at her, his face deadly serious._

_"Hanna, if something were to happen to me over there, I want you to do something for me." He told her. She furrowed her eyebrows at him._

_"What?" she asked. He pressed his lips together and watched her for a moment before answering her._

_"I don't want you to grow old and alone. I want you to find someone else, please." She rolled her eyes._

_"Nathan, you're talking crazy." She muttered._

_"I'm serious Hanna. You told me the same thing, and I mean it. I want you to be happy." He told her. She looked down and let her hand rest over top of his. She wasn't sure if she was able to move on after Nathan. There was only one man who she loved just as much, maybe even more, than Nathan. He was now dead, and even if he wasn't she knew them being together would be impossible._

_"Hanna?" she nodded._

_"Okay, I'll try." She whispered. He nodded and kissed the side of her head._

_"I love you." He told her. She smiled._

_"I love you too." She replied, kissing him deeply._

* * *

Hanna held onto Danny's hand tightly as she heard the sound of Taps being played. Rachel was on her other side, placing a supportive hand on her shoulder. Rachel also held a small packet of tissues, but Hanna was determined not to cry, she had cried enough the past few days. A Military officer handed her a folded up flag as a gun shot erupted from behind her. She knew he was speaking, but she couldn't quite tell what he was saying. She did pick up that he was telling her that her husband was a wonderful soldier and served his country well.

"Thank you." She muttered when he was done. He smiled and walked away, leaving the priest to finish his sermon. When he was finally done he gestured to Hanna, and she walked up to the coffin, placing a black rose on the silver coffin. A single tear rolled down her cheek and fell upon the coffin. She paused for a moment and let Danny place his own rose on top of it.

"Come on honey." She told him, leading him to the car. She didn't even bother to wait for everyone else, they all knew where to go. She needed to get out of there, she couldn't take the dower feeling anymore.

"Where are we going?" Danny asked. Hanna glanced at her son in her rearview mirror, taking in his tired eyes.

"Just for some dinner, then we'll go home, okay?" she asked. He nodded and rested his head against the window. Hanna bit her bottom lip as she quickly pulled into the restaurant, parking the car and stepping out. Danny hopped out and stood in front of her, messing with his tie. She chuckled and kneeled down.

"Mom, I can't get this stupid tie to stay on." He muttered. She quickly grabbed it and unclipped it.

"Sweetie, it's a clip on tie. It's easy to put on, let me show you." She said, putting it on for him. He nodded his head and looked up at her, his dark brown eyes meeting her pools of beep blue.

"Thank you." She nodded and kissed the top of his head. When the rest of the group arrived they all entered the restaurant and had lunch. Hanna was in the middle of talking to her mother-in-law and Rachel. After some time her mother-in-law left, leaving Hanna and Rachel alone to talk. Rachel looked around and then back at her.

"Did Bruce stop by?" she asked. Hanna shook her head.

"No, I didn't expect him to either." She said solemnly. Rachel held her hand.

"I'm sorry, Hanna, I'll call him and-"

"No, forget about it. I have enough things to worry about." She told her. She glanced over to where Danny was sitting to see him fast asleep at the table. Rachel chuckled lightly.

"Poor kid, he's exhausted." She remarked. Hanna nodded and walked over, shaking him lightly.

"Danny, come on honey, let's go home." She old him softly. He yawned and nodded, standing up with his jacket in hands.

"Bye aunt Rachel." He muttered, hugging her tight.

"Bye kid, get some sleep." He nodded and grabbed Hanna's hand, then walked out with her to the car. They took the long ride home and walked up to their apartment.

"You tired buddy?" she asked. He nodded.

"Yeah." She ran a hand over his head and lead him to his room, taking his jacket when he handed it to her.

"Alright, change into you're pajama's and get ready for bed, I'll be back in a minute, okay?" Danny nodded and began to change out of his formal clothes. Hanna walked out of his room and into the kitchen, putting his jacket on the table while she began to take the trash out. She should have taken out that morning, but she had put it off.

"Mom!" Danny shouted. Hanna placed the bag on the ground and walked into his room, walking over and helping him get into bed.

"You alright baby?" she asked, smoothing out his covers.

"Mom, can I have T-Bear?" he asked. She paused as she remembered the old toy quite well. It was a toy he had since he had been born, and just recently he had decided he was much too old for the toy. She nodded and walked over to his closet, standing on her toes to grab the old brown bear. When she did she placed it next to him in the bed, tucking him in as well.

"You alright?" she asked. He nodded and held the small bear close.

"I'm fine." He mumbled. She nodded and kissed the top of his head.

"Goodnight Danny." She told him.

"Night mom." He muttered before drifting off. Hanna turned off his bedroom light and made her way back to the kitchen, where the bag of left over trash awaited her. She gave a sigh and picked it up, making sure she didn't get any thing on her dress. She took the long trek down the stairs and into the back alley. She threw the bag of trash into the large garbage bin, and then moved so she was leaning against the wall.

"I can't do this." She whispered. Tears fell down her cheeks as she stared across the way at the alley wall. She was at a loss for what to do now. Nathan had been by her side for ten years, thought for most of it he was deployed, he had helped her through the hardest times for her. He was the one who helped her get over Bruce, and now he was gone.

"Hanna." A voice called. Hanna broke her trail of thought and looked around the alley, not finding anyone at first, until someone emerged from the shadows.

"Matt?" she asked. He looked at her only for a moment before stumbling around the alley, falling into a pile of trash. She went to help him, but stopped when she realized that he had a knife in his hand. "Matt…"

"Where is Olivia… were… where is my daughter?" he asked. He seemed to be dazed and confused.

"They aren't here." She answered, backing up away from him. He ran a hand through his hair.

"I KNOW THAT! I… I went looking for them and, and I couldn't. Hanna, where did you hide them?" he shouted. Hanna jumped and continued to back away from him.

"I'm not hiding them anywhere Matt, please, let me get you some help." She pleaded. Matt swung the knife, almost slicing her open in the process.

"NO! No damnit. Where are they?" he snapped, pointing the knife at her.

"They… they're in, um, California. Olivia needed to be with her family after you got sick. Mathew, just put the knife down." Hanna asked. Matt gripped the knife and pushed her up against the wall, placing the knife against her throat. She gave a small shriek and looked into his eyes pleadingly.

"Matt, don't do this." She asked.

"You're lying to me! Tell me the truth!" tears began falling from her eyes.

"I'm not lying, please Matt, you've got to believe me!" she cried.

"Tell me the truth!" he shouted. Before she could say anything, she felt him being pulled away from her in an instant. She watched as a dark figure soon subdued him and made sure he was knocked out. A second later her knees gave out and she sank to the ground, tears falling down her cheeks like waterfalls. The figure moved into the light, and she was able to make out the man they called 'Batman.'

"Are you alright?" he asked. She shook her head and sobbed. He kneeled down and looked at her. "Are you hurt?" he asked.

"No, I'm not hurt… not physically." She confessed. He paused and watched her for a minute longer before standing up and looking at Mathew.

"He should be fine, he is currently detoxing from the drugs he was exposed too. I'll take him to a hospital and they'll give him the cure. He'll be fine." She looked up at him and nodded her head a little.

"Thank you." She replied shakily. He didn't leave at first, his gaze was still on her.

"You'll be okay, you're strong. You'll make it." He whispered. She was able to catch it, barely, but she did catch it. She got a confused look on her face, but when she went to say something he took off with Matt in tow. Hanna sighed and pulled herself up, running a hand through her dark hair. She wiped away her tears and walked back into her house, putting on her Pajamas and falling asleep.

She wasn't asleep for long, she was plagued by nightmares involving her deceased husband and other horrible things. She woke up to the sound of thunder and the crack of lightning, making her jump up in bed. When she saw there was nothing she quickly wiped away her tears and took a few deep breaths.

"Mom?" she looked over and saw Danny enter the room.

"What's the matter honey?" she asked. Danny walked over to the bed.

"I can't sleep, can I stay with you tonight?" he asked. Hanna sighed but moved over, giving him enough room to lie on the bed. He crawled in and she lightly draped the blanket over him, making sure he was nice and warm before she laid down herself.

"You comfortable?" she asked. He nodded and pulled hit stuffed bear closer to him. He looked up at her with his big brown eyes.

"Mom, you won't leave like Dad did, will you?" he asked. She frowned and kissed the top of his head.

"I will try my hardest not to baby." She whispered, holding him tight until he finally fell asleep.


	6. Chapter 6

_**Anyone else tired? I'm freakin' exhausted. I blame Marching Band. Believe it or not, running around parking lots and field, along with jumping jacks and stamina exercises takes a lot out of you. And I'm going out with friends later today. Awesome!! I'm going to sleep great tonight.**_

_**ANYWAY, thank you to everyone for reviewing, I appreciate it. Also thanks to those who added this story to their favorite list, and alerts list.**_

_**Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter, and you can also leave a review. That would be awesome**_.

**Disclaimer: I do not own Batman, it belongs to D.C. comics, and Warner Brother pictures, and the new movies belong to Christopher Nolan. I do own the Plot and Hanna, along with her family. Do not steal.**

_**

* * *

**_

**"**Hanna, come on, just a few more pushes and then your done." Hanna gripped his hand as tears came to her eyes.

_She shook her head. "I can't, I'm too tired." She muttered weakly._

_"Hanna, I did not come home from Iraq to see you give up now. Come on, just a few more." Hanna gave a angry huff and put her energy into trying to get the six pound child out of her womb. When she couldn't anymore she fell against the bed. Nathan quickly pushed some strands of hair out of her eyes._

_"Nate, it hurts so much." She told him. _

_He nodded. "I know Hanna, just imagine his big blue eyes smiling up at you when this is over." She laughed as he wiped some tears away from her eyes._

_"Okay." She whispered. She gave one more push before she heard the sound of a baby's cry, causing tears to pour down her face. The doctor smiled at her._

_"Congratulations, it looks like a healthy baby boy. You want to cut the cord daddy?" she asked. Nathan gave a tentative smile but nodded his head and carefully did what the doctors asked. When he was done, they took the small child away and cleaned up the mother and child. Nathan sat down next to Hanna after the doctors had made sure she was stable._

_"I love you." He whispered to her. She looked up at him and smiled weakly._

_"I love you too." She replied. He leaned down and pressed his lips lightly against hers, causing her to smile into the kiss. When he pulled away he brushed some more hair away from her eyes and smiled down at her._

_"Mr. and Mrs. Sanders, do you want to see your son?" the nurse asked. Hanna sat up, with some help from Nathan, and nodded. The nurse walked over and placed the blue bundle in her arms, helping her hold the baby correctly. Hanna smiled down at her son as she let her fingers lightly touch his chubby cheeks._

_"Hey little guy, it's mommy." She told him. The baby made a little sound which caused her to smile. Nathan kissed the top of her head and light caressed the top of the boys head._

_"Welcome to the world, Danny." He whispered._

**

* * *

**

"Hanna, you've got to stop burying yourself in your work." Rachel told her. Hanna sighed and looked at Mathew, who was currently buying some new clothes.

"What do you want me to do Rachel? I'm so busy trying to raise Danny and helping out Matt, I don't have time for anything but work." Hanna argued. Rachel sighed and sat down next to her on the small bench Hanna was sitting on.

"Hanna, it's been six months, it's November for heaven sakes. I know you are sad, but Nathan would have wanted you to move on, maybe you should start." Hanna sighed and ran a hand through he hair, which was now down to her waist.

"I'll get around to it, I'm just… I have too much going on." She confessed. Rachel nodded and watched as Mathew paid for his things.

"Ready?" Hanna asked. Matt nodded and they all left the store.

"So, I heard Sasha is moving to Gotham." Rachel said. Matt furrowed his eyebrows.

"Sasha… why does that name sound familiar." Matt asked. Hanna looked up at him and gave a small smile.

"I went to college with her, I think I brought her home for thanksgiving one year." Matthew looked thoughtful for a moment before nodding.

"Oh yeah, I remember. Darker skinned girl, green eyes, dark hair, nice ass. That her?" Hanna laughed and shook her head.

"Yeah, pretty much, except maybe the ass part." Matt shrugged.

"She and Olivia seemed to get on pretty well." Rachel mused. Matt's eyes darkened a bit, but he said nothing. Rachel seemed to sense her mistake instantly, and went to apologize, but Hanna cut her off.

"So, when is Sasha getting here?" she asked.

"Oh, um… tomorrow morning. She wants to meet for lunch and spend the afternoon together." Hanna nodded.

"Alright, I guess I can call my mom to watch Danny." Hanna mused aloud.

"I'll watch Danny." Matt offered. Hanna looked up at him.

"It's okay, you have a lot to do. I mean, aren't you packing and everything?"

He shook his head. "I'm not leaving for San Diego for a few days. Go have fun, you deserve it."

Hanna sighed but smiled. "Thanks Matt." He smiled and wrapped an arm around her shoulders in a brotherly fashion.

"No problem Hanna."

_**

* * *

**_

"You know what, forget this, it's an ugly shirt." Sasha said, throwing aside Hanna's shirt and going through the rest of her closet.

_"I don't understand why I can't just wear what I'm wearing now." Hanna muttered, marking up a few key points in her textbook. Sasha walked over to her._

_"Hanna, this is a first date, it is like, monumentally important." Hanna rolled eyes and went back to her book._

_"Sasha, we're only going to dinner at some local bar type pub place, it's not some fancy dinner or anything." Hanna stated, taking a few notes in her notebook. Sasha sighed and picked up her book, tossing it on the bed._

_"Hanna Grey, you are going out to dinner in two hours, you need to get ready!" Hanna went to grab her books but Sasha grabbed her wrists and pulled her into the bathroom._

_"Sasha Marie Antoinette Parker, let me go this instance!" Hanna cried. Sasha paused for a moment then glared at her._

_"You promised you would use my full name." she told her. _

_Hanna shrugged. "I needed to get you to let go somehow." She confessed. She went to run away but Sasha grabbed her before she could run off._

_"Oh no you don't Hanna Nicole Alicia Rose Grey." She said, pulling her into the bathroom. Hanna tried to fight her, but she was no match and soon gave up._

_"You loser." She muttered. _

_Sasha laughed. "You love me." Hanna rolled her eyes and let Sasha begin her 'make-over.'_

**

* * *

**

"OH MY GOD! Bitch you let yourself go!" Hanna blinked a few times before looking down at herself. She then looked back at her friend.

"No I haven't, I look fine." She argued.

Sasha rolled her eyes. "We'll get to that later. How have you been? I am so sorry about Nathan, I tried to get some time off but they said no until I could move. Oh you must be so upset." Hanna shrugged and forced a smiled.

"I'm working on it. It's getting better." Sasha smiled and turned to Rachel.

"Rachel, I Haven't seen you since Hanna dragged you to that huge party Oliver Lewis threw." Rachel laughed.

"I know, I've been working. I'm trying to get Harvey Dent into office." She told her.

"Elections are Tuesday, right?" Hanna asked.

Rachel nodded. "Yes, are you voting?"

Hanna nodded. "Yup, during my lunch break."

"So, you're working as a school teacher now. You having fun?" Hanna rolled her eyes and took a sip of water.

"Tons of fun, I love dealing with teenagers all day then going home and dealing with a eight year old."

Rachel rolled her eyes. "Don't listen to her, she loves her job. Despite the mobs involvement." Sasha raised an eyebrow and looked at Hanna.

"The mob is involved with the school?"

Hanna sighed. "It's only for funding. The only thing they require is a place for one of their mob guys on the board. Every now and then the head boss comes in and checks it out, but most of the time they keep to themselves."

"And you're okay with this?" Sasha asked.

"It is what it Is. There really isn't much more I can do Sasha. I need a job in order to keep my apartment and take care of Danny. So if the job happens to be run by the mob, then it's run by the mob."

"Okay, well, what you do is what you do I suppose." Sasha reasoned. Hanna nodded and began nibbling on some biscuits.

"So, what are you doing now a days?" Rachel asked.

"I'm a reporter, I'm actually working at the Gotham Post. Hopefully it wont take me too long to get to be editor and chief."

Hanna chuckled. "Sasha, you know that it's going to take forever."

Sasha rolled her eyes. "Not if I get the right story." She argued.

"Oh? What story are you looking for?" Rachel asked.

Sasha smirked. "Batman, who is he? Why is he protecting the city? Can he really fly? You know, the good story." Hanna nodded, but noticed how Rachel seemed to freeze up.

"Good luck, the police don't even have a clue." Hanna said.

Sasha shrugged. "I'll get it, I'm very persistent."

Rachel laughed. "You don't have to tell us." She remarked.

"If it wasn't for your persistence Jenny would still be a blonde and not a red head." Hanna muttered.

Sasha turned toward her. "Speaking of hair…" she trailed off. Hanna furrowed her eyebrows before she realized that she was talking about her.

"No, Sasha, I don't have the money for one of your makeovers." She argued.

"I do. Consider it a birthday present."

Hanna's eyebrows furrowed. "My birthday is July third."

Sasha shrugged. "So?"

Rachel chuckled. "It's November."

Sasha shrugged. "Okay, it's a late birthday present. Come on girl, you need to freshen up a little."

Hanna rolled her eyes. "I don't have time, today is my last free day for a while." Sasha smiled and stood up, grabbing a hold of Hanna's arm and pulling her up.

"Let's go now, I know a friend here who will do your hair now." Hanna looked at Rachel for help, but Rachel was busy laughing.

"Have fun, Sasha I'll give you fifty bucks to get her a nice outfit too."

Sasha smiled. "Of course, only two or three outfits this time."

Hanna shook her head vigorously. "Sasha Parker, if you drag me into that salon I swear, I'm going to-"

"Hanna Sanders we are going to get a makeover, and you will get over it."

Hanna sighed and pressed her lips together. "Fine."

Sasha gave a little squeal of excitement and pulled her out of the restaurant.

Four hours later she found herself entering her apartment and preparing herself for the criticism of her family. Hanna lightly touched her hair, being slightly taken back by how much shorter it was. Of course it was still pretty long, but it seemed much shorter to her. It now reached a little past her shoulders and hung in layers. The stylist put some highlights in her hair, causing her hair to shine a little more. Her outfit wasn't too flashy, but it did seem to hug a few curves she long since forgot she had.

"Mom, what happened to you?" Danny asked upon seeing his mother.

"Um, well… Auntie Sasha got bored." Matt laughed a little and shook his head.

"I like it, you look cool." Danny told her, going back to drawing. Hanna ran a hand through her hair once more before looking at Matt, who smiled.

"You really don't look half bad Hanna. You look at least twenty five and not thirty-one."

Hanna scrunched her nose. "Oh my gosh, I'm thirty-one." Matt laughed and went back to watching T.V.

"Come on Hanna, you aren't that old." Hanna sighed and sat next to him, watching as Danny continued to color.

"You're not a single mother." She muttered. Matt sighed and took her hand.

"You'll make it Hanna, I know you will."

_**

* * *

**_

"Sorry the night was a little boring. Jen tells me that you are used to upscale parties and things like that." Nathan said.

_Hanna shrugged as she walked next to him. "I wouldn't worry about it. I had more fun at that jazz club then any of the upscale parties I've been to." She told him. _

_He smirked and moved a little closer to her, his hand finding hers and lacing his finger in-between hers. She smiled and made no moved to pull away from him._

_"So, how is it a small time girl from Gotham, get's into the trust fund brigade parties?" he asked. _

_She shrugged. "My mom worked at Wayne Manor and I ended up being really good friends with their son." She told him._

_"You were friends with Bruce Wayne?" he asked. She nodded and moved a little closer to him when a breeze flew by. "Are you cold?"_

_"A little." She admitted. Nathan broke away from her for a second and took off his leather jacket, placing it on her shoulders._

_"There you go, you should be a little warmer." Hanna smiled and looked down in order to hide the blush rushing to her cheeks._

_"Thank you." She muttered. Nathan laughed and let his hand rest under her chin, directing her head up in order to face him._

_"You look cute when you blush." _

_She laughed. "You look cute in general." He then shook his head and let his other hand brush some dark strands of hair._

_"Just so you know, I think I'm going to kiss you." He told her, smiling when another blush came to her cheeks._

_"I think I might be okay with that." She confessed. He smirked and leaned down, pressing his lips against hers._

**

* * *

**

"I'm sorry I'm late class, I had some business to take care of." Hanna said as she walked into class.

"Did you drop your brother off Mrs. Sanders?" A student asked.

Hanna nodded. "Yes I did. Alright, now-"

"Mrs. Sanders, did you get a hair cut?"

Hanna sighed. "Yes, I did."

"I like it, you look hot." The class laughed and Hanna rolled her eyes.

"That was a little inappropriate James, but thank you."

James winked. "Anytime." She laughed and watched as the students began to pick up their instruments.

"Alright, let's warm up, start with concert F. 1-2-3-4-5-4-3-2-1, crescendo from beginning to end. Try to have good tone quality on the first shot, and Trumpets, remember the crescendo starts from the Tuba, not you guys." She told them, causing some of the other members of the band to chuckle. She began the warm up, commenting on a few things here and there, but was surprised to see that the students seemed to be playing pretty well. It wasn't until she noticed the two men in the back of the room that she realized they were trying to play better for them.

"Okay, let's get started on our music. Now, for this first piece, trumpets I want you guys to come in strong, but don't ruin your tone quality. Be proud, not annoyingly loud. Low voices, same for you guys, try not and come in to harsh, but you could be a little louder." She then began the rest of class, conducting it much like she did with the warm ups. She noticed the men in the back talking quietly, but didn't truly recognize them, seeing as they were too far away. As much as she hated to admit it, she was slightly thankful that class was over.

"Remember to put the band room in the same shape you found it. Jazz band has rehearsal later today and marching band members have practice tonight, please be on time and have all your things, if not you can prepare yourself for a couple laps around the field." She heard a few students groan in protest, which she chuckled at, and began putting her things away.

"You really know how to conduct a class, doll." Hanna froze for a second before turning toward the two men, know recognizing them as Maroni and a body guard Falcone used to haul around with him.

"Mr. Maroni, what do I owe the pleasure?" she asked.

He smirked. "I'm making sure my investment is well spent. I have to say, I'm beginning to wonder if we really need the music program." Hanna looked down and tried to ignore the fact the man was taking a step forward.

"I really don't understand why the mob is so interested in the school, what can you guys do here?" she asked quietly.

"You own the school…" he trailed off. She soon caught on.

"You own the future. I didn't think you were that smart." She admitted. She kept her head down in order for him not to see the fear in her eyes. She wasn't a fool, she was no match against a mobster.

He chuckled. "That mouth will get you in trouble." He told her, taking a step toward her.

"The last thing I need is trouble." She stated. Maroni went to reach for her cheek, but she flinched away. He shook his head and was about to say something when the door opened and someone walked in. Hanna froze as her blue eyes met his pair of warm brown.

"Hanna?" he asked. Maroni took a few steps back and placed a hand on her cheek, despite her flinch. He then smiled down at her.

"We'll keep in touch doll." Hanna moved away from his hand while she glared at the floor as he walked out the door. She then looked at Bruce, who was now glaring at her.

"You know Maroni?" he hissed. Hanna picked up a binder, walking toward Bruce and toward her office.

"What do you want?" she asked, walking into her office that she shared with the chorus teacher. Bruce followed.

"I want to know why Maroni is walking around like he owns the place?" Bruce snapped. Hanna placed her binder on her desk and turned toward him.

"Because he does own the place. Him and the rest of the mob." She shot. Bruce was silent for a moment before looking at the chorus teacher, who was packing up his things and leaving the room.

"When the hell did this happen?" he asked. Hanna shrugged and checked something on her computer.

"I don't know, it's been like this for as long as I've worked here." She answered, turning around and looking into a filing cabinet.

"Then why are you working here?" he asked, walking up to her. She slammed the cabinet and glared at him.

"Because I have to provide for my child, Bruce, or did you forget? I really am a single parent now, I guess you wouldn't care though, you didn't even make it to his funeral." She hissed, walking back to her desk.

Bruce was silent for a moment. "Hanna, I'm so-"

"Why are you here Bruce?" she asked. He sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

"Rachel called and told me I should see you." He told her.

Hanna scoffed. "Of course she did, you wouldn't be here if she didn't." she snapped, walking past him and bumping him a little, though she doubted it had the effect she really wanted.

Bruce followed her into the classroom. "What is that supposed to mean?" he asked.

She turned toward him. "It means that our friendship is solely based of Rachel, it has since the eighth grade for Christ's sake." She snapped, walking up to the conductors podium and moving some of the score music around.

Bruce furrowed his eyebrows as he thought of this statement. It certainly was close to accurate, but he doubted that he was friends with Hanna based off of Rachel. He sighed and walked over to her. She look different from when he last saw her, granted the last time he saw her, she was a mess and was crumbling in front of him. Though, she seemed to have gathered herself quite well, even giving herself a new haircut.

He wasn't sure if she was completely over Nathan's death, but she was definitely moving on with her life. Maybe if she wasn't taking care of Danny she would have retreated into a hole for herself, but she would have crawled out and continued on with life. It was just how Hanna did things. He had missed her very much when he left. He wished he could just tell her the truth, but that wasn't possible.

"I'm sorry Hanna, I just… I didn't think you wanted me around." She paused and looked at him, her eyebrows furrowed.

"Why on earth would you think that?" she asked.

He sighed. "Hanna, we both know that we didn't leave on the best of terms. I didn't want to hurt you anymore than I did. You're my best friend." Hanna shook her head and looked at him, a flash of sadness crossing her eyes.

"Bruce, that happened over twelve years ago. I moved on, and you… well you didn't need to move on, you always loved Rachel, but that's not the point. We're grown people, you didn't have to avoid me like we are in high school." She told him.

He smirked. "We are in a High School." Hanna stopped and glared at him, but then began to chuckle shaking her head and running a hand through her dark locks.

"You are such a dork." She told him.

He paused and then moved closer to her, pulling her into a hug. She froze for a second but hugged him back, using a moment to take in his scent, which always reminded her of a new car, maybe with some cologne added. Bruce also took a moment to let his nose remember her familiar smell of oranges and cream. It must have been a shampoo that she had used, but he knew she always had smelled that way.

"I'm sorry Hanna, I really am." He told her. She pulled away and tucked a strand of hair behind her ears.

"Thanks Bruce, that means a lot to me." She confessed. He smiled and looked at the clock.

"I better be going." He told her.

She nodded and smiled. "Alright, I'll see you around Bruce." She told him.

_**

* * *

**_

"Who was your first?" Nathan asked.

_Hanna looked up from her spot on the ground next to the fire place. She was only dressed in her black panties and one of Nathan's button up shirts. He only had boxers on, and they were surrounded by a ton of pillows and blankets. Hanna grabbed a piece of pineapple and took a bite._

_"You first." She demanded. Nathan, who was leaning against the couch, took her pineapple and finished the rest._

_"Fine, Emily Brewster, she was my girlfriend for two years before we did it." He told her. _

_She sat up and tilted her head. "Well, how come you're sitting here with me and not with her?" she asked. _

_He sighed and ran a hand through his messy hair. "Well, when I told her I was joining the military, she wasn't too happy. She ended up breaking up with me, telling me it was better if we just let it be." She nodded and grabbed a glass of champagne and taking a sip._

_"Let it be." She repeated. Nathan watched her for a moment._

_"So, are you going to tell me your first?" he asked. _

_She smirked. "What's with the whole first thing? I must say it's the most awkward pillow talk I've ever had." She told him. _

_He chuckled. "Just answer the question Hanna." _

_Hanna sighed but answered him. "My first time was at some high school party. I got drunk and had sex with my best friend." She admitted, taking another sip of her drink._

_"That sucks." _

_She shook her head. "Not really, I was in love with him at the time, so it wasn't a waste. The only down side was that he was actually in love with my other best friend, but I was free so." _

_Nathan frowned a little. "Who was it?" he asked. She debated on telling him for a minute, but couldn't find a reason not to._

_"Bruce." _

_His eyes went wide. "Bruce Wayne? Wow. I'm not sure how I can compete with that." She laughed and moved over so she was sitting on his lap and was facing him._

_"There is no competition, I'm here with you, aren't I?" she asked, leaning down and kissing him deeply. He pulled away and placed a hand on her cheek._

_"You still love him, don't you?" he asked. She pressed her lips together and let her eyes drown in his for a moment._

_"I can't lie to you, Nate." He sighed and pressed his forehead against hers._

_"How can I compete?" he asked quietly. _

_She kissed his lips. "You don't have to worry, he's gone forever now, and I'm with you. I may have loved Bruce, but I'm so in love with you I can't believe it." She told him. He sighed and kissed her deeply. She responded instantly and let him begin to unbutton her shirt._

_"I love you." He told her._

_"I love you too."_

**

* * *

**

Hanna glanced up from her book she was reading to see the news, shaking her head as they talked about another band robbery. She looked over at Danny, who was busy playing with a few action figures on the floor, and frowned. She wasn't really sure if she could continue living here with all the crime going around. Though, it was getting a little better. Hanna was distracted from the T.V. when Sasha walked through the front door.

"Can you believe the traffic in the city, I swear I was going to shoot someone trying to get over here." Hanna rolled her eyes and put her book down.

"Welcome to the city darling." Sasha rolled her eyes and sat down next to Hanna, shaking her head at the news.

"You know, if I wasn't a reporter, I would leave this city. What's your excuse?" Hanna shrugged and looked at her.

"I'm too lazy to move." Sasha laughed and shook her head. They watched the news for a little while longer, before Hanna checked the time.

"Going somewhere?" Sasha asked.

Hanna rolled her eyes and stood up. "I'm not, but Danny is." Danny's head shot up and his eyebrows furrowed.

"Where am I going?" he asked.

Hanna smiled. "To bed, it's nine-thirty and you have school tomorrow." She told him, causing him to give a groan of protest.

"Mom, I'm nine years old, why does my bed time have to be so early?" he asked. She rolled her eyes and walked over to him, holding out her hand to help him stand up. He took it and let her pull him up.

"Because little boys need lot's of sleep so they can grow big and strong." She told him. He rolled his eyes and looked up at her.

"But, I'm not little, I'm nine!" Sasha chuckled at his reaction.

"Okay, well when you're twelve we'll talk about you staying up later. Now, time for bed." Hanna ordered.

Danny gave a sigh of defeat and followed her into his room. She soon got him to bed and walked back out into the living room where Sasha was continuing to watch the news, which was now showing a story on Harvey Dent.

"Alright, I got him to go to sleep." Hanna said, kneeling down and picking up his toys and throwing them in the toy box.

Sasha smiled. "He's so adorable Hanna, you are so lucky." Hanna rolled her eyes and stood up, putting her hair into a ponytail.

"Yeah, well, you don't see him when he's being a stubborn brat. I swear he acts just like Nathan sometimes." She muttered.

"He looks a lot like Nathan now that he's getting older." Hanna sighed and sat down next to Sasha.

"I know, her reminds me so much of Nathan it hurts sometimes." She stated. Sasha gave her friend a sympathetic look and grabbed her hand.

"I'm sorry, Hanna, it must be so difficult."

Hanna shrugged. "What's done is done, I can't change the past." She muttered.

Sasha frowned but didn't push the matter any further. They went back to watching the television, and Sasha saw Hanna shift uncomfortably when news of Bruce Wayne came up on the screen.

"So, have you heard from Bruce lately?" Hanna looked over and glared at her.

"No, not since he stopped by the school about a month ago. Rachel hasn't seen much of him either."

Sasha shrugged. "Just thought I'd ask." Hanna shook her head and sighed.

"Bruce and I… we don't really talk anymore."

Sasha frowned. "I'm sorry hon, I know how much you like him."

Hanna rolled her eyes. "Maybe at one point, but things are different now." She confessed.

"How so?" she asked.

Hanna shrugged. "I don't know, he just… I think he's trying to put on a mask for the rest of the world, but he's hiding something."

Sasha rolled her eyes. "We all wear masks honey. You wear a mask all the time." Hanna raised an eyebrow at that statement.

"What are you talking about? I'm always me 100% of the time." She told her.

"Please, you try to act all tough and strong, but you really are just as vulnerable as anyone else. Oh, and don't get me started on how you were with Nathan, I mean for three years you acted as though you didn't love Bruce, when we all know you did. Even Nathan knew, he just loved you too much to let you go."

Hanna was silent for a moment. "I don't-"

"Hanna, I love you, but come on. You love a guy that will never love you back, and you always will, no matter what." Hanna bit her bottom lip and closed her eyes.

"I know. I can't help it, I just love him." She whispered.

"You need to get over him eventually." She told her.

"I don't think I could if I tried."


	7. Chapter 7

_**I have returned!! You miss me? Ha, ha, ha!**_

_**This will probably be the last chapter I post for a while, since I'm about to enter Band Camp (Yay?!) and right after band camp school starts. So I might not be able to post anything for a while (Which is why this is so long). I'll try and post as much as possible, but to be honest, god only knows when that will be.**_

_**I want to thank everyone who reviewed last chapter. And thanks to all who added this to their alerts list and their favorites list.**_

_**I hope I don't disappoint.**_

**Disclaimer: I own nothing of Batman, almost all of it belongs to guys in big offices. I don't one Christian Bale either, not that I'd want to, but just for the record. I don't. I do own Hanna and all other OC's that do not belong to the guys in the office.**

_

* * *

_

Her laugh rang out through the reception hall as he whispered something about his uncle in her ear. She pulled away from him a little and her smile widened.

_"You're mean." she told him. He shrugged, a few of his medals clanking together on his uniform. _

_"You love me anyway, Mrs. Sanders." She smiled and kissed him lightly._

_"I always will, Mr. Sanders." She told him, picking up her stark white dress a little. There was a silence between then, where his face became serious._

_"Do you love me more than you love Bruce?" he asked quietly, causing her to freeze. She bit her bottom lip and closed her eyes, trying to think of her next move._

_"Of course-"_

_"Be honest, Hanna, Please." He whispered. She pulled away a little bit and looked him in the eye. Another moment and she answered._

_"I love you with all my heart, but I will always love Bruce." She answered. He pressed his lips together and looked down over his uniform, then back at her._

_"Would you leave me for him?" he asked._

_"Never." She answered immediately. Nathan look up and smiled, pressing his lips onto hers, earning a collective sigh from the wedding guests._

_"I love you." He whispered._

_"I love you too."_

* * *

Dark nights were filled with terror in Gotham, but things were slowly getting better. There were places in Gotham where one could walk at night and not worry about getting mugged or hurt. Those places were rare, however, and tended to be no where near anyone lived.

Hanna Sanders was no exception. She was thankful that she had a car to drive her and her son around, since that seemed to be the safest way to do things. It was a shame though, around march was the time that she loved to get out and walk, but that just wasn't possible anymore. Though, she did feel a bit better about Batman running around and taking care of the criminals. That didn't mean she was going to place all of her safety in one man.

"Mom, guess what?" her son asked. Hanna looked up from her list of grades to look at her son. He was now nine years old, and was turning out to be a very mature boy. It was weird how much he changed in a year, it was almost scary. She just contributed it to the fact that he had lost his father, and little less than a year ago.

"What?" she asked. He smiled and showed her a picture of a young girl, someone in his grade.

"This is my girlfriend." He stated proudly. Hanna raised an eyebrow and looked at the picture.

"Danny, you're only nine, how do you have a girlfriend?" she asked.

He shrugged. "Well, I told her I thought she was pretty, and then asked her to be my girlfriend. She said yes." Hanna sighed and glanced down at him.

"You know, I think we should have you talk to your grandfather about this." She muttered. Danny shrugged and ran into the other room, leaving Hanna alone with the picture. She shook her head and stood up, grabbing a jean jacket.

"Danny, come on, we're going out!" she called. He nodded and ran into the room. Usually he would be in school, but he was sent home early due to his school having to do some last minute maintenance on it's air conditioner. So, in return, she ended up coming home early from work to take care of him.

"Where are we going?" he asked. She handed him his own jacket and waited for him to put it on.

"Well, first we need to go to the bank, then we're going to see Grandma and Grandpa for a bit." She answered. He nodded and followed her down the hallway. He soon began to talk about this girl from school. She found out her name was Christina, and she was one of the prettiest girls in his class. She soon realized that he really needed to have a talk with his grandfather. Soon they got in the bank and he quieted down.

"Mom, why are we here?" he asked. She looked down at him as they waited in line.

"I need to make a deposit. Unless you want to move in with Grandma Grey." Danny thought about it for a moment.

"If we move in with Gee-gee, does that mean I have to eat her broccoli casserole?" Hanna cringed and nodded. As much as she loved her mother, she had no idea why she insisted on feeding her broccoli casserole every time they came over. She wasn't even sure if that was a real meal.

"Probably." She answered.

"Never mind, I'll wait." He answered. She smiled and continued to wait in line. About three seconds later gun fire went off, causing her to grab her son and kneel to the ground.

"Everyone on the ground, get on the ground now!" She silently cursed herself for being so close to the edge, where they were closer to the safe. A man ran past them, and she pulled Danny closer to her.

"Mom." He said quietly, showing he was scared.

"I know, it's alright. I'm here." She whispered, holding him tighter. She looked down and saw that they were putting grenades in people's ands and pulling the pins out.

"Obviously we don't want you doing anything with your hands, other than holding on for dear life." The man finally came to her and paused, finding there was nothing in the bag.

"Hey, Bozo, I'm out of grenades." The man said. Even through his mask, she could tell his eyes were scanning over her. The man named Bozo kneeled in front of her, and looked at Danny, who was sticking close to his mother.

"I think she'll be fine," he reached out and cupper her chin in his hands. "She tries anything funny, just blow her brains out, Ha ha!" he shouted, jumping back near the other man. The man in front of her stood up, and in another second he was blown away. Hanna glanced behind her, seeing the bank manager walking toward them. She tried to shield her son from the violence.

"You picked the wrong fucking bank to rob! You and you're friends are dead!" he shouted. Two of the clowns conversed and she looked down at her son, who was shaking a bit. She held him close and flinched when one stood up and went to fire. He fell to the ground when the bank owner shot him, only to be shot by one of the other clowns.

"Where did you learn how to count?" the first one asked. He then ran back to the vault leaving them alone. Hanna glanced up at the other clown, flinching a little when she saw he was staring straight at him. This only resulted in pulling her son closer to her. He was about to take a step toward her, only to be cut off by the other guy running in with a bunch of bags.

"Come on, there is a lot to carry." He said. The other clown ran off, leaving the first one to watch the hostages. He glanced at Hanna and Danny, glaring at the young boy who was glaring up at him.

"You got something to say?" he snapped. Danny immediately looked down and moved closer to Hanna, causing her to look up and glare at him.

"No, nothing." She told him. He was about to say something, when the other clown ran in. The clown put the bags down and they glanced at the big pile.

"If this guy was so smart, he would've gotten us a bigger car." He muttered. He then pulled out his gun and pointed it at the other clown. "I'm betting the Joker told you to kill me as soon as we got the cash." The other man shook his head.

"No, no… I kill the bus driver." He answered. Hanna covered her sons eyes, sensing what was going to happen next.

"The bus driver?" the man asked. At that moment a bus crashed into the wall of the bank, causing a few bricks to fall on the man. When he didn't get up, Hanna assumed he was now dead. Soon a man jumped out of the back and began to help load the money in the bus. After a moment the guy looked around.

"Hey, where are the other guys?" he asked. The clown turned around and shot him, causing Hanna to give a small gasp. He looked around a minute before his eyes landed on Hanna once more, causing her to move closer to the counter. Before the man could move forward, the bank owner spoke.

"Think you're smart, huh? Well, the guy who hired you is just going to do the same to you…" The clown began to walk toward him, shaking his head. He then walked up to him and kneeled down. "Sure he will. Criminals in this town used to believe in things... Honor. Respect. What do you believe, huh? What do you bel-" he was cut off by the man stuffing a grenade in his mouth.

"I believe, that what does not kill you…" he trailed off, taking his mask off. Hanna heard Danny gasp as they gazed on the man. His face stark white and red painted lips.

"Makes you strangers." He told him. He then stood up and began to walk away, showing everyone the thread tied to the pin. Before the Joker left he paused at Hanna, and held up his gun. He then let off a few shots on the counter above her, causing her to scream and duck lower, if possible. He then laughed and walked over to her, handing her a playing card. She took it, fearing that if she didn't he might shoot her.

"Here's my uh…" He trailed off and licked his lips. "Card, be a sweetheart and uh, give that to Mr. Gordon for me." He told her before walking off.

He got into the bus and began to drive off, causing all the room to go deadly silent as the pin fell out of the grenade. Hanna held her son tight as they waited, only to let out a sigh of relief when it was only a smoke bomb. After a minute Hanna pulled out her cell phone, but still kept Danny close.

"_911, what's the emergency?"_

"Yes, I'm at Gotham Central Bank, they've just been robbed. We need some help." She told the man.

_"Ms. We aren't getting any silent alarms, are you sure?" _He asked.

"Yes I'm sure. They have people with their hands tied to grenades. Please, just get here." She said, hanging up the phone before he could reply. As soon as she got off the phone Danny turned around and hugged her tight, and she returned it.

"Momma." He whimpered. She pulled him closer and kissed the top of his head. She then looked back at the other people, most of which were crying. She looked down at the ground, seeing the playing card her left. She took a deep breath when she saw it was nothing but a joker card and soon dropped it back on the ground. This was an experience, she never wanted to repeat again.

_

* * *

_

When Batman had been called into the scene of a bank robbery, he wasn't surprised to find out that it was a mob bank. He entered swiftly, and even took two detectives by surprise. Gordon looked at the woman and she nodded, turning around.

_"Give us a minute, please, people." She said, walking out of the room. Gordon waited for a minute before handing him a blowup picture._

_"Him again, who are the others?" he asked._

_"Another bunch of small timers." He answered. Batman glanced in one of the picture at some of the hostages, stopping when he saw two people at the end._

_"Who are they?" he asked, noticing they weren't bound like everyone else. Gordon glanced at them before answering._

_"Hanna Sanders, and her son Daniel." He answered. Batman immediately tensed upon hearing this, but tried not to give that away._

_"Why aren't they bound?" he asked. He shrugged._

_"Not sure, they said that it was because they ran out of grenades. She was given this card though, before he left. We just assume he was toying with her." Batman had to hold back his anger as the card was placed in his hand. Why was Hanna here? What happened? Was she alright? He was soon taken out of his thoughts when Gordon began talking about the bills. Batman decided that he would think about Hanna later, he had a job to do now._

* * *

After an extremely long day, Hanna was just happy to be home. The only downside was that Danny had refused to leave her side. They had sat threw a good three hours of questioning before they were finally allowed to leave.

"Danny, why don't you go play with your toys or something." He shook his head.

"I'm okay." He stated, still standing next to her. She sighed and kneeled down to his level.

"Honey, I'm just going to be in the other room. Just go and play with your toys while I make dinner."

He shook his head. "Mom-"

"Daniel, I'm not going anywhere, just go and play. Everything will be fine." She told him. He sighed but walked off to his room. Hanna took a deep breath and walked into the kitchen, getting some macaroni and cheese from a box. Her fingers tapped the counter as she silently waited for the food to cook, though she was having a hard time concentrating.

The whole afternoon had been a fiasco, and she had dragged her son into it. She felt horrible for that. Danny should have never had to deal with that. Now, not only was he afraid to lose his mom because of his dad, he was afraid to leave her side. She sighed and served dinner, calling her son into the room. They ate in silence, to engrossed in their own thoughts.

When dinner was done, Danny had brought his homework into the kitchen. Further proof that today's events had traumatized him. Usually he would be in the living room doing his homework, that way he could try and be sneaky and turn the T.V. on when she wasn't looking. After a long while Hanna looked up at the clock.

"Danny, it's almost ten, you need to get to bed." Hanna told him, cleaning up the dishes.

"Can I sleep in your room?" he asked. She gave a heavy sigh and turned toward him, her blue eyes meeting his warm brown.

"Okay, go get ready for bed." He nodded and ran into his room, leaving her alone once more. What was she going to do? She knew he had to get over it eventually, but in a way, she was afraid of letting him go too. She quickly took out the trash and walked into her bedroom, sighing when she saw Danny fast asleep on Nathans side of the bed. She grabbed her pajamas and quickly took a shower.

_Gotham is getting too dangerous, maybe we should move out._ Nathan had told her. She wished she had listened to him. Maybe she wouldn't be in this predicament. She thought about all this as she changed into her black cotton pajama bottoms and tank top. She scrunched her hair and walked back to the living room to lock the door. The last thing she expected was the man of the night. She jumped and let out a small scream, causing her to cover he mouth and back into the wall.

"Shit…" she muttered. He said nothing as he continued to stare at her, making her feel a little uncomfortable. "How did you get in here?" she asked.

"Window." He answered simply. She glanced over and realized that there was a window in the hallway that lead to the fire escape.

"Forgot to lock that one." She muttered. Batman took a step toward her, causing her to take one back. He might have been the 'protector' of the city, but he was still a vigilante.

"You were at the bank today, where the Joker was." Her eyebrows furrowed at his statement, but nodded.

"Yes, why?" she asked. He said nothing as he let go a piece of paper. She watched it float down to the floor in front of her, and realized it was a Joker card. She took a deep breath and let her eyes raise to his.

"Why did the Joker give you this?" he asked.

She shrugged. "I don't know. He's the one who's crazy, ask him." Batman looked like he was struggling with something, but soon contained himself.

"Are you alright?" he asked. This question caught her off guard. When did the Batman care if people were okay or not?

"Yeah, I guess. Just a little shaken." He said nothing, but looked at the small collection of toys Danny had left out on the floor. He then looked up at her, as if to ask if he was okay, but didn't give her a chance to answer.

"Mom!" she heard Danny cry. She turned toward her bedroom, then back to the living room, shocked to find Batman was no longer there. She blinked but walked back to her bedroom, where Danny was up. Tears were falling down his cheeks as he looked at her.

"Honey, it's okay, I'm here." She told him, bringing him into a hug.

"I miss Dad." He cried. She sighed and rubbed his back.

"I do too."

_

* * *

_

Hanna glanced around the corner, watching as Mrs. Dawes began to cook dinner for the Wayne family. Hanna glanced at Bruce, who glanced at Rachel. She nodded and ran into the kitchen, stopping in front of her mother.

_"Mom, can you help me with something?" she asked. Mrs. Dawes glanced down at her eight year old daughter._

_"What do you need honey?" she asked._

_"I left my coloring book in the car, can you help me get it?" Mrs. Dawes nodded and put the pot of boiling spaghetti sauce on low. She then walked with Rachel outside, leaving the kitchen empty._

_"Come on!" Bruce said, grabbing Hanna's hand and dragging her into the kitchen. The two children then grabbed a chair, pulling over toward a shelf. Bruce was the first to stand on the chair, before helping her up._

_"You think you can get it?" she asked. He reached up to grab the jar of cookies, but couldn't reach._

_"No, it's too high." _

_She sighed and looked at him. "Can you raise me up?" she asked. He nodded and cupped his hands, indicating that she should stand in it. She did so and he raised her up, faltering slightly._

_"Don't drop me." Hanna ordered._

_"I won't drop you, just get the cookies." She nodded and reached up, her fingers brushing against the jar._

_"What are you doing?" a voice asked. This cause Bruce to slacken his hands, and let Hanna slip. When she did, her arm hit the counter, which caused her to do a small flip mid air and landed on the same arm she had hit._

_"Ouch!" she screamed. She closed her eyes, in order to stop the tears from pouring down her cheeks. The amount of pain that now came from her arm blocked out all other senses as she concentrated on that._

_"Hanna, honey are you alright?" she heard her mother ask. Hanna shook her head as she continued to cry._

_"I didn't mean to drop her!" Bruce cried. There was no answer as she felt someone pick her up and carry her over to a couch._

_"Is she going to be alright?" she heard her mother ask. Her eyes were still closed as she was trying not to sob. She felt something stick in her skin and she let out a cry of pain._

_"Her arm might be broken, we'll have to call an ambulance to make sure." She heard Mr. Wayne say. Hanna opened her eyes and she looked up into a pair of warm brown eyes, much like Bruce's._

_"I'm so sorry Mr. Wayne for all this trouble." Her mother apologized, her blue eyes looking down at her daughter. Hanna soon felt a overwhelming calm feeling, and she could swear some of her body was getting numb._

_"It's alright Sandra, accidents happen." He told her. Mr. Wayne then wrapped up her arm in a make-shift cast and left the room to call an ambulance. When they were gone, Rachel and Bruce walked up to Hanna._

_"Are you alright?" Rachel asked. Hanna nodded._

_"Yeah, my arm just hurts." Hanna replied, her voice was small. Bruce frowned._

_"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to drop you." He told her._

_"It's okay, next time Rachel is getting the cookies." They all laughed, but went silent when Mr. and Mrs. Wayne walked into the room._

_"Children, why don't you give Hanna some air, go play upstairs." Mrs. Wayne suggested. Rachel and Bruce frowned but ran off, giving Hanna a goodbye. Hanna's mother sat next to her daughter and frowned._

_"You alright?" Sandra asked. Hanna nodded._

_"My arm doesn't hurt as much."_

_"I gave you a bit of morphine, you should be fine." Mr. Wayne told her. She frowned, not too sure what morphine was, but nodded._

_"Thank you?" she asked, causing him to laugh. "I can't believe I fell, I'm such a klutz." She muttered._

_"Do you know why we fall?" Thomas Wayne asked. She shook her head._

_"No." she answered._

_"We fall, so we can learn to pick ourselves up." He told her. She smiled._

_"Master Wayne, the ambulance is here." Alfred said upon entering the room. Just as he said that, Bruce came running down the stairs, Rachel at his heels._

_"Hanna, did you fall again?" he asked. Hanna shook her head._

_"No, why?" she answered, the morphine now taking full effect. She leaned against her mother, her eyes half opened._

_"There is an ambulance here." She frowned and looked at her mother._

_"Why?" she asked._

_"Come on, honey, we need to get your arm in a cast." She said. Hanna nodded and stood up, almost bumping into Bruce._

_"You'll be back tomorrow right?" Bruce asked. Hanna looked at her mother, who shook her head._

_"No, Hanna will probably stay home and rest tomorrow." Rachel and Bruce frowned._

_"But we were going to play in the gardens!" Rachel told her._

_"Mom-"_

_"Come on Hanna, we need to go. Thank Mr. Wayne for looking at your arm." Hanna sighed but forced a smile on her face._

_"Thank you, Mr. Wayne." He smiled and nodded._

_"Of course, I hope you feel better soon, Hanna." She smiled widely at his kindness and walked off with her mother._

_"Get better soon, Hanna!" Rachel called. Bruce said nothing, simply watched as the paramedics walked over to her and picked her up, taking her into the truck. After a long minute, Mrs. Dawes went back to work and Rachel turned toward Bruce._

_"You want to play tag?" she asked. _

_Bruce shook his head. "We can't play without Hanna." He told her. _

_Rachel sighed. "Come on, we'll find something to do." Rachel grabbed his arm and began dragging him toward the stairs. Thomas and Martha Wayne chuckled and shared a look._

_"I have a feeling those girls are going to be in our sons life for a long time." Martha said. Thomas nodded._

_"Maybe even marry one of them." He mused. She raised an eyebrow._

_"Oh really? Just out of curiosity, which one do you think he'll marry." Thomas Wayne thought for a minute. No harm just speculating, right?_

_"I think it's going to be Hanna." Martha Wayne nodded._

_"I think he's going to marry Rachel." Thomas shook his head._

_"Father knows best." He told his wife. She laughed and smiled._

_"We shall see."_

* * *

"You know, I can never got over how… homey your apartment feels." Rachel muttered. Hanna shrugged and continued to go over a few grades. Rachel had decided to come over for a visit, and Hanna didn't decline.

"Really? It feels a bit lonely sometimes." She confessed.

Rachel shrugged. "I don't know, you still have Danny." Hanna sighed and glanced at the T.V. hearing about a few more banks being robbed, and a possible merger with Wayne Enterprises and L.S.I., which might take place.

"I know, and I love my son. But… I'm lonely, and by that I mean I, as a woman, am lonely. I just, haven't had the chance to go out."

"So, you're over Nathan?"

Hanna sighed. "I don't know if I'm over him, I don't think I'll ever be. It's just… after the bank incident, I just… I don't know. I'm afraid of being alone. With Nathan, even if we weren't exactly safe, I still felt safe when he was around."

Rachel gave her a sympathetic look. "I'm sorry, Hanna. I know how tough it's been."

Hanna shrugged. "It's fine, I'm just tired of being scared. I'm about to put boards on my windows." Rachel tapped on the table lightly and pressed her lips together.

"You know, you could always ask to stay with Bruce, I'm sure he'd let you."

Hanna shook her head. "The last thing I want to do is bother Bruce. Plus, I'm not sure how much safer his penthouse is."

Rachel sighed. "Safer than you know." Hanna raised an eyebrow. "Look, if you're really scared, just call Bruce, he would understand."

"I know he would, but I'm not going to go cry for help. I'm a big girl, and I have things to do." Rachel glanced over at the counter, picking up an ivory invitation.

"So busy that you can't go to a party?" she asked. Hanna glanced over at the invitation and shook her head.

"The last thing I need is a party with the trust fund brigade." She muttered.

"But at least we know people there." Rachel told her.

"Yeah, but I get invited to at least six of those parties every year, what makes this one so different?" Rachel moved so she was almost on top of her.

"Because this is in honor of Harvey Dent, and Bruce is throwing it."

Hanna rolled her eyes. "Now I really want to go." She muttered.

"Come on Hanna, you should dress up and have fun. Who knows, you might actually find yourself in Bruce's arms." Hanna turned toward her friend, her eyes surprisingly cold, but it didn't seem to faze her.

"The only reason you want me to be with Bruce, is so you wont feel guilty about dating Harvey." Rachel paled a bit and sighed.

"Is it that obvious?" she asked.

"Why do you people always ask me that?" Hanna muttered.

"Well, is it?" Rachel pressed. Hanna shook her head and continued to go over her grades.

"No, I guess not. I've just known you your whole life." She explained. Rachel shook her head and looked back at the invitation.

"Hanna, this is one of the few treats the people of Gotham have. Why should you be an exception?"

Hanna sighed. "Come on, Rachel, I'm too busy. Besides, I outgrew nice looking party dresses a long time ago." She said. Rachel stood up and grabbed her arm.

"Nope, don't think so. If anything, you now have the means to fill one out."

Hanna's jaw dropped. "I can not believe that you just-"

"Great, come on, I know a place where we can get dresses for cheep!"

_

* * *

_

"And then the man turned around and saw the zombie, his arms out and his teeth bared-"

_"Come on Bruce, you can tell a better scary story than that." Hanna interrupted. _

_Bruce glared at her. "Okay, here is one…" The ten year old girl leaned in closer, while Rachel hugged her pillow close to her chest._

_"What is it?" Hanna asked, a bit condescending. _

_He smirked. "Your face!" Hanna pouted and smacked him with a pillow._

_"Well, you are a spoiled brat, you know that!" she snapped. He laughed and laid back on the large bed._

_"You love me." Hanna scrunched her nose and looked at Rachel._

_"I think he's starting to lose his mind." Rachel laughed and shrugged._

_"It was bound to happen." In reality, the two girls were just glad to see him laugh. Ever since his parents death, he hadn't really been the same. But finally, after two years, he was smiling again. Alfred said it had a lot to do with the two girls, since they hardly left him alone, and their mothers agreed._

_"Come on children, time for bed!" Alfred said. The three of them giggled but complied, Hanna and Rachel walking next door to their own room._

_"Night Bruce!" Rachel said, which Hanna mimicked._

_"Night." Bruce replied. _

_"Goodnight Alfred!" Rachel and Hanna chorused._

_"Night girls." He said, turning the lights off. After a few minutes, Hanna could hear Rachel's deep breaths, signaling she was asleep. Hanna rolled over on her side and attempted to go to sleep herself. Though the room was silent, Hanna found it hard to sleep. Her mind was going a million miles a minute._

_The reason for this sleepover wasn't simply because Bruce was bored. It was more for Rachel than anything else. Her father had been sent to the hospital, and her mother wanted her to be surrounded by her friends. Of course Hanna's mother agreed, and Alfred agreed to have them over._

_The simple fact that Rachel's father might not come out of the hospital made Hanna think. How sure was it that her parents would be around next week? Bruce had lost his parents in an instant, and Rachel's father soon looked to meet the same fate. Hanna gave a sigh and ran a hand over her face, trying to banish those thoughts away._

_Eventually, she concluded that she just needed to take a walk and stepped out of the room, trying not to wake Rachel. When she reached Bruce's room a small groan of pain came from the room, which caused her to open the door and pear in. Her eyes eventually landed on Bruce, who was tossing and turning in his sleep. She stepped through the slightly ajar door and made her way over to him. He continued to shift and let out small cries of pain, until Hanna reached out and touched his shoulder._

_"Bruce," she whispered. As soon as she shook his lightly, he shot up and let out a small cry of fear. Hanna jumped, but didn't move away._

_"Bruce." Hanna said again, causing him to look at her. As soon as his eyes met hers, he lunged forward and hugged her. She stumbled back a bit, but hugged him back. She began to feel wet tears on her shoulder, and gave him a squeeze._

_"Hanna, I saw it again. I can't get it out of my head." He cried. She frowned rubbed his back._

_"The bats?" she asked. _

_He nodded. "And… my parents." He whispered._

_"I'm sorry Bruce." She told him. He said nothing as he continued to embrace her. After a moment he pulled away and wiped the tears away. "You alright?"_

_"Yeah, I'm fine. Just… don't tell Rachel I was crying." He told her. _

_She nodded. "Sure." She answered. She went to go back to bed, but Bruce held her back._

_"Hanna, can you just, stay with me for tonight… I don't want to be alone." _

_She paused but nodded. "Okay." Bruce nodded and moved over in the bed. She laid down and turned to face him, he did the same. Hanna closed her eyes and there was silence for a good minute._

_"Hanna…" he whispered. She opened her eyes and her blue eyes met his warm brown._

_"Yeah?" she asked. He pressed his lips together as the silence wore on._

_"Are you scared, living in the city?" he asked. _

_She shrugged. "Not really, we live in a pretty safe part of Gotham." She answered. Bruce nodded and began to trace circles in the sheets. "Do you miss them?" She asked._

_"Yeah, I do." He answered after a moment of silence. _

_She frowned. "I'm sorry, Bruce. It's not fair." He nodded and looked down._

_"No, it's not." She nodded and gave a small yawn._

_"We should go to sleep." She told him. He looked up, his brown eyes a holding a bit of fear._

_"I don't want to go to sleep." He mumbled quietly. She reached down and grabbed his hand._

_"I'm here, you don't have to feel afraid." She told him. He kept her gaze for another minute before nodding and closing his eyes, a tight grip on her hand._

_"Night Hanna." He muttered._

_"Night Bruce."_


	8. Chapter 8

_Oh my gosh! I'm here, I'm alive. IT'S OKAY! DON'T PANIC!!! Ha ha ha, I'm joking._

_Sorry, I've been very busy. This is the first time I've gotten to a computer since… Thursday. Man. I've had marching band and school all this week, then the SAT's and a competition Saturday (We won in our group, third overall.), and today I wrote and did laundry. Tomorrow I'm shooting a video to help my friends homecoming campaign. He want's to be homecoming queen. Don't ask questions._

_Anyway! Thanks to all who reviewed and added this to their alerts and favorites list. I appreciate it._

_I tried to make it a bit longer since I won't update for a while, this is a rare treat. I'll try to update after my band trip to Atlanta Georgia, but I make no promises._

_I love reviews, don't be afraid to leave them._

_**Disclaimer: I do not own Batman, they belong to people who now live in nice big houses. I do own Hanna and any other OC's that you are not familiar with. I also own the plot. Please don't steal them. **_

* * *

Hanna stood in the elevator, her fingers subconsciously intertwining with the string of her handbag. She silently cursed Rachel for convincing her to go to this stupid party. Of course she supported Harvey Dent, especially since he was currently trying to put away a ton of criminals. She simply didn't feel safe leaving her son at home, now more than ever with the Joker on the loose. She glanced over in her reflection in the elevator and sighed.

The dress had a halter V-neck design, and had double thick bands of rhinestones further defined the bodice. The silky fabric of the dress flowed to the floor, making seem to float around her. The back of the dress had thick sparkling upside-down v straps. The middle of the back had another purple strap, and finally a last line of rhinestones right above her butt. The whole dress was a solid purple, standing against her dark hair.

She felt like a fool in the dress, not that she didn't like it, it was a nice cheep dress that she found at the mall. She did feel like a fool doing to this party. She knew Rachel was secretly trying to push her and Bruce together, but she also knew that she too was in love with Bruce. This thought came with the overwhelming urge to smack the man. He was just complicating their lives, why did he have to be so difficult?

The elevator made a small ding and she realized that she was almost at the level. She look one quick look in the mirror. The top half of her hair had been pulled back, leaving her bangs to be swept to the side. The rest of her hair fell into curls, going just past her shoulders. When she was satisfied, she face the doors, and they soon opened.

"Mrs. Sanders! It is wonderful to see you again." Hanna glanced over and smiled widely at the older man who made his way over to her.

"Alfred, how have you been?" she asked, smiling widely.

"Just fine, busy as usual." She chuckled and grabbed a glass of champagne.

"Well, if it means you have a job…" he nodded.

"Of course… can I get you anything else?" she shook her head.

"No, I'm fine. I doubt I'll be here for long." She answered. Alfred nodded and walked off, leaving her alone. Hanna looked around, trying to find someone familiar. When she found that was in vain, she walked over to the snack table.

"Hanna Grey, is that you?" Hanna turned around and gave a polite smile.

"Hanna Sanders now, I'm sorry Mr.…" she trailed off as she looked up at the red headed man in front of her, his green eyes sparkling with amusement.

"Patrick Dougherty, it's been a long time." He told her. She gazed over the man once more, his black tuxedo seeming to hide a somewhat decent build. He wasn't fat, but she doubted that he was built.

"Patrick? Oh wow, the last time I saw you was at Bruce's eighteenth birthday party." She said, a little shocked. He laughed and nodded.

"Yeah, it has been a while. I'm sorry for my behavior, it was exceedingly inappropriate to grab your… behind." He told her. She blushed a deep red at the memory.

"Don't worry about it." She told him, taking another sip of her champagne.

"So, it's Hanna Sanders now? Who is the lucky man?" he asked. She frowned a bit, but attempted to smile.

"He was Nathan Sanders, a sergeant in the Military." She answered.

"Was?" Patrick asked. She sighed and nodded.

"He died in combat, a while ago." He frowned.

"I'm sorry, Hanna, that's horrible." She shrugged.

"It's life… I'm moving on." He nodded and began the topic of another conversation. He was apparently in the middle of a divorce to his second wife, and was in the middle of negotiating child custody terms with his first. They began talking about a few other things before Rachel walked over.

"Excuse me, Pat, mind if I borrow Hanna for a minute?" Patrick nodded and said his goodbyes to Hanna, which she returned. When they were a good distance away Rachel nudged her.

"So, chatting up Pat Dougherty are we?" Hanna laughed.

"More like trying to find someone I knew. Where have you been?" Rachel smirked.

"I had to try and get Harvey out of the car." She answered. Hanna raised an eyebrow.

"Oh really? Why?"

"He's afraid of the trust fund brigade." Hanna laughed and shook her head.

"Go figure, poor guy, you shouldn't leave him alone for too long." Rachel was about to say something, but was interrupted by the sound of a helicopter landing. Hanna and Rachel glanced over and watched Bruce walk out of a helicopter, three girls on his arm.

"Jeez." Rachel muttered. Hanna also shook her head upon seeing her old friend.

"Almost an hour late, of course." Hanna snapped. Rachel shook her head and they both watched as Bruce entered the penthouse, causing the group of people to create a circle around him.

"Sorry, I'm late- glad you started without me! Where's Rachel?!" Rachel tried to hide back in the crowd, but Hanna pushed her forward.

"Go." She whispered. Rachel hesitantly stepped forward, her face embedded with a slight frown.

"Rachel Dawes- one of my oldest friends. When she told me she was dating Harvey Dent, I had one thing to say... The guy from those god-awful campaign commercials?" The room erupted in laughter and Harvey looked down, obviously embarrassed. Hanna sighed and watched as Bruce continued to look at him.

"'I Believe in Harvey Dent.' Nice slogan, Harvey. Certainly caught Rachel's attention. But then I started paying attention to Harvey, and all he's been doing as our new D.A., and you know what? I believe in Harvey Dent. On his watch, Gotham can feel a little safer. A little more optimistic. So get out your checkbooks and let's make sure that he stays right where all of Gotham wants him…" He raised his glass. "All except Gotham's criminals, of course. To the face of Gotham's bright future- Harvey Dent."

"To Harvey Dent!" the room chorused. Everyone soon began to talk and go back to how they were before. Hanna glanced over and saw Bruce make his way to the terrace.

"I need to talk to Bruce…" Rachel snapped. Hanna glanced over and saw an older woman walk over to Harvey.

"You want me to save your boyfriend from Mrs. Cheeks?" Hanna asked. Rachel looked over and looked like she was torn.

"Do you mind?" she asked. Hanna shook her head.

"Nope, I'll save him. Go talk to Bruce." She said, walking off.

"Thanks!" Rachel called, but Hanna ignored her. She walked up to Harvey, who looked a little suffocated by the older woman talking to him.

"Mrs. Langston! It's so good to see you again." Hanna said. Mrs. Langston looked at her for a moment before her face lit up.

"Hanna Grey! How lovely it is to see you!" Hanna forced a smile.

"Same here, how are your children and grandchildren?"

"Fine, just fine. I was telling Harvey here that my daughter Elizabeth is in need of a husband. She's the only one of my seven babies who isn't married with children." Hanna nodded.

"Well, I'm sure she will find someone. Do you mind if I steal Harvey? I have something to ask him." Mrs. Langston nodded.

"Of course, it was wonderful talking to you." Mrs. Langston said. Hanna nodded while pulling Harvey away from her. When they were out of earshot Harvey turned toward her, an appreciative smile on his face.

"Thank you, I didn't want to be rude, but she was getting a bit too close for comfort." Hanna laughed.

"Yeah, she was moving in to pinch your cheeks." She told him. He frowned.

"That would be rather unpleasant. My face hurts from smiling all the time as it is." Hanna smirked and shook her head, handing him a drink and walking so she was across the table from him.

"I wasn't talking about those cheeks, Dent." He frowned.

"You mean-"

"Oh yes, I remember the first party like this Rachel and I went to, she pinched Mr. Wayne and he jumped and screeched in surprised. We called her Mrs. Cheeks from then on out." Harvey laughed.

"So, you've known Bruce and Rachel a long time?" he asked. She nodded and took a bite out of a piece of shrimp.

"Mmhmm, ever since I was five I believe." He nodded.

"So, what's going on between her and Bruce?" she looked up and her blue eyes met his dark brown.

"Nothing, that I know of. I do know that Rachel loves you and wouldn't do anything to hurt you." Hanna told him.

"Is that your way of telling me that they do, but she isn't do anything about it?" he asked. She smiled.

"No, I'm saying that's my way of telling you not to worry. And that she really loves you, which means you break her heart, I break your nose." He laughed and looked out the patio windows.

"You think I should go get her." Hanna shrugged.

"Go for it, I doubt they're talking about anything interesting." She muttered. He nodded.

"Thank you, for saving me." She nodded.

"Of course." He smiled and left. Hanna sighed and walked over to one of the windows, gazing down at the streets of Gotham. She heard Rachel and Harvey enter the penthouse, but didn't bother turning toward them. After a few minutes, she felt a hand on her shoulder.

"You alright?" she turned and her eyes met his light brown. Her eyes traced over his face, and she resisted the urge to frown. He looked extremely tired. He was paler than usual and he had dark circles under his eyes.

"I'm fine. Great party, Bruce. Did you have Alfred arrange everything?" he chuckled. Even under her thin layer of make-up, he could see she was worn. Though, she still looked quite lovely in her dress.

"I helped with a few things. I honestly didn't think you would come." She frowned.

"Well, if you like, I could go." She said, turning to walk away. Bruce quickly grabbed her arm, ignoring the warm feeling generating through his body, and pulled her back.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that." He told her. Hanna paused as she saw a faint glimpse of the 'old' Bruce come through. "I just meant, you always say your busy."

"I was, I am. Rachel asked me to come." Bruce raised an eyebrow.

"Rachel can get you to come to a party, but not me?" he asked. She smiled and shook her head an brushed her bangs to the side.

"You know how much I _love_ these parties." He nodded and looked around.

"Don't we all."

"I just, I needed a break from reality for the night. I thought this might have been able to help me out." She confessed.

"Did it?" he asked. She paused and shook her head.

"I don't think so. The only thing this party did was bring up old memories." He nodded and smiled.

"Hopefully only the good ones." She shrugged.

"I suppose. We never really had a bad time." He nodded and a comfortable silence came upon them.

"You remember Alice Cambridge's thirteenth birthday party, where we ended up playing seven minutes in heaven?" he asked, gazing out the window. She chuckled and looked up at him.

"Yeah, that was my first make-out session." He laughed a little.

"Mine too." She nodded and looked down at her fingers, which Rachel had painted. When she looked up she saw Bruce had his attention on the street.

"What is it?" she asked. He said nothing at first, then looked at her.

"Excuse me." He said, walking off.

"Bruce?" she asked, but he was already gone. She gave a sigh and walked over to the champagne table, grabbing another glass.

"Mrs. Sanders, good to see you." Hanna glanced over and smiled at the elderly gentleman.

"Mr. Rockford, good to see you too, how have you been?" she asked. Alex Rockford was the only rich socialite who sent all three of his grandchildren to the public schools, two of which she had in her class.

"Fine, just fine. How is the school going?" he asked. She smiled.

"Alright, since it is the end of the term things are hectic." He nodded.

"Yes, I remember those days, when I used to be a teacher myself. I hope your holding up well, especially in a school like yours." Hanna nodded.

"I'm doing just fine, surprisingly, the schools haven't been that bad. We get the occasional student with a weapon, but most of the fights are just with fists." He nodded.

"It is certainly getting calmer." He agreed. There was a pause before gunshots echoed through the room, causing people to scream and then go deathly quiet.

"Good evening, Ladies and Gentle-man. We're the, uh…entertainment for tonight." His voice called. Hanna became still as she saw his stark white face, and bright red lips. She instinctively looked around for Bruce and Rachel, but couldn't find them.

"I only have one question: where is Harvey Dent?" Hanna instinctively looked around, but couldn't find him. "Anyone?"

He began going around the room and asking everyone if they had seen Harvey. Occasionally he would grab an appetizer, or take a sip of champagne, but he ultimately seemed to be looking for Dent. He made his way over toward her and Mr. Rockford, causing her to tense up.

"You know, I'll even settle for his loved ones." The Joker stated. Mr. Rockford stood forward, despite Hanna grabbing onto his sleeve.

"We're not intimidated by thugs." He stated. The Joker paused for a moment, twirling his knife in his hand.

"You know… you remind me of my father." The Joker stated. He lunged forward and grabbed the man, putting the knife to his mouth. "I hated my father…"

"Please don't." Hanna cried, unable to stop herself. The Joker looked over at her, his black eyes seeming to stare right through her. He let go of Mr. Rockford and took a step toward her.

"And, uh… who might you be… sweetheart?" The Joker asked, licking his lips. She took a step back as he walked closer to her.

"No one." She mumbled quietly. He twirled the knife in his hand and kept walking toward her.

"Well… perhaps you know where uh… Mr. Dent, might be. Seeing as you are, um, no one, and he is uh… no where." She shook her head, and before he could say anything else, Rachel cut in.

"Okay… that's enough." The Joker turned his attention to Rachel, and left Hanna to 'talk' to Rachel.

"Hello, beautiful. You must be Harvey's squeeze." He said walking up to her. "And you are beautiful. You look nervous- it's the scars isn't it? Wanna know how I got them? Come here, come here!" he said, grabbing a hold of her and placing a knife to he cheek.

"Rachel." Hanna whispered, bringing her hands to her mouth.

"I had a wife, beautiful like you. Who tells me I worry too much. Who says I need to smile more. Who gambles. And gets in deep with the sharks. One day they carve her face, and we've got no money for surgeries. She can't take it. I just want to see her smile again. I just want her to know I don't care about the scars. So I put a razor in my mouth and do this to myself…" he made a motion with his mouth, as if he was swishing mouthwash around before he began laughing, or possibly crying.

"And you know what? She can't stand the sight of me... She leaves! See, now I see the funny side. Now I'm always smiling." Rachel took a step back and punched him in his gut, then took a few steps back. The Joker simply began laughing.

"A little fight in you. I like that." Joker said.

"The you're going to love me." A gruff voice broke out. Immediately, a fight started between Batman and the thugs, and Hanna made her way over to Rachel. Before she could, however, she was thrown aside by one of the thugs and the Joker grabbed Rachel and pointed a gun to her head. Batman stopped fighting the smaller thugs and glared at the joker.

"Put the gun down." He ordered. The Joker laughed.

"Oh, Yeah, Sure. Just, uh… take off your mask and show us all who you are…" Hanna stood up and walked closer to the scene, her eyes meeting Rachel's and sensing the panic in her. Hanna jumped when The Joker shot the window and then held Rachel over the ledge. The Batman took a step forward and his glare seemed to be even more fierce.

"Let her go." He rasped. The Joker chuckled.

"Hmm… bad choice of words." He said, letting go of Rachel and running off. As soon as he did Batman charged after her, leaving the Joker plenty of time to get away. His chuckled echoed through the place, but Hanna ignored him as she walked over to the window and attempted to look down.

"Can you see them?" someone asked. She shook her head.

"No, is there a back way I can go?" Alfred nodded and pointed toward the kitchens. She immediately took off but stopped when she heard someone banging on a closet door. She raised an eyebrow at the broom locking the door. She pulled the broom out and Dent practically fell to the floor.

"What the hell is going on?" he asked.

"Jesus, Harvey, are you alright?" She asked. He ran a hand through his hair and looked around.

"Where is Rachel?" he asked.

"We need to get to the street, come on." She said, grabbing his arm. As soon as she made it to the elevator, it opened and Rachel walked out.

"Harvey!" she cried, lunging herself at him. He took hold of her immediately and pulled her into a hug.

"God, Rachel, are you alright?" he asked.

"I'm fine, I'm just glad you're alright." Rachel said. Hanna raised an eyebrow.

"You fall out of a forty story building, with Batman diving after you, and you're fine? Jesus woman." Hanna mumbled. Harvey went wide eyed and began questioning her as soon as the three of them got into the elevator. The couple began arguing and Hanna pinched the bridge of her nose, she hated being the third wheel. It wasn't until they reached the twentieth floor did Harvey break off the argument.

"Hey, where was Bruce? I didn't see him when I got out of the closet." Rachel simply shrugged and Hanna furrowed her eyebrows.

"I don't know." Hanna mumbled, her mind a million miles away.

_

* * *

_

Hanna gave a small sigh as she continued to watch the lacrosse game. Rachel sat next to her, absentmindedly twirling her hair with her finger. Hanna pulled out her drum stick and began to absentmindedly tap a rhythm on her leg.

_"Why are we here?" Rachel asked. Hanna shrugged._

_"Something about supporting Bruce. I'm not sure why he wanted to do lacrosse though." Rachel shrugged and began examining her nails._

_"I don't know, he's always been one weird thirteen year old kid." Hanna nodded and flipped one of her drum sticks, smirking widely when she caught it._

_"I think his dad wanted him to play or something. I don't know." There was a long silence as they continued to watch them play. After a moment, someone sat next to Hanna, causing her to jump._

_"Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you." Hanna raised an eyebrow at the young man, but quickly looked back at the game and continued to drum away. After a minute longer he spoke once again. "I'm Lance."_

_"Lance Armstrong?" she asked, not looking at him._

_"No, Lance McCartney. You are?" he asked._

_"Ignoring you." She stated, causing Rachel to laugh. Lance gave a small chuckle._

_"You know, if you don't tell me, I'll just pick a random name off the top of my head." He told her, leaning back._

_"Go for it." She answered, glancing at Rachel._

_"Alright… how about Cindy?" he asked. She scrunched her nose and turned toward him, her blue eyes meeting his grey. He seemed to be a few years older than her, with sandy blonde hair kept under a beanie._

_"Do I look like a Cindy to you?" she asked._

_"You do unless, you tell me your real name." she sighed and began drumming once more. After a moment of silence she spoke._

_"Hanna Grey." He nodded._

_"Nice to meet you Hanna, how long have you been drumming?" he asked. She shrugged._

_"Since the third grade." He nodded._

_"You play set… or?"_

_"No, I'm a percussionist, also a really bad pianist." She answered._

_"So, what would you think about playing in my band?" he asked._

_"I think I would say no." he smirked and moved closer to her, not noticing the game was now over._

_"Well, what about going out with me Saturday night?" he asked. "I'll pick you up." Hanna glanced over and raised an eyebrow._

_"Pick me up?" she inquired._

_"Yeah, in my car." Rachel looked over, her eyes wide._

_"You drive?" Rachel asked. Lance smirked and nodded._

_"Yeah, most sixteen year olds can." Hanna smiled widely._

_"Oh really? So… what kind of car do you have?" she asked._

_"A Mustang." Hanna looked at Rachel, and both girls smirked. They then turned to him and smiled._

_"Bruce has a Mercedes." Lance raised an eyebrow._

_"Who is Bruce?" he asked._

_"I'm Bruce." A voice interrupted. Both girls looked up and smiled. Lance, however, looked a little dejected._

_"Oh, hi." Bruce gave a nod and looked at the two teenagers in front of him._

_"You guys ready to head home?" they nodded._

_"Thanks for the offer, Lance, But a Mercedes beats a Mustang, unless it's vintage." Hanna said. Lance frowned and watched the group walked off._

* * *

"Ladies and Gentlemen, thank you for coming. I've called this press conference for two reasons. Firstly, to assure the citizens of Gotham that everything that can be done over the Joker killing is being done. Secondly, because the Batman has offered to turn himself in-" Dent was soon interrupted.

"So where is he?!" A voice called. Hanna crossed her arms as she continued to watch the television. Danny was in his room, currently cleaning it, so she didn't feel bad about watching the press conference.

"But first. Let's consider the situation: should we give in to this terrorist's demands? Do we really think that-" Again, Harvey was interrupted.

"You'd rather protect an outlaw vigilante than the lives of citizens?!" A reporter shouted. On some level, Hanna agreed with him. On the other, Batman had protected the city for some time, so she wasn't exactly excited to see him go.

"The Batman is an outlaw... But that's not why we're demanding he turn himself in. We're doing it because we're scared. We've been happy to let Batman clean up our streets for us until now-"

"Things are worse than ever!" a person shouted. Hanna nodded as she thought of all the mayhem running around. She had watched the funeral for the past commissioner turn into a shooting, and Rachel called her, telling her that she was now staying at Bruce's in order to keep safe. Though she wasn't sure why Bruce's place was safe, she didn't question her.

"Yes. They are. But the night is darkest just before the dawn. And I promise you, the dawn is coming. One day, the Batman will have to answer for the laws he's broken- but to us, not to this madman." The crowd was quiet and she could feel goose bumps erupt on her skin at his words. She felt like she should be clapping, but the room was still silent as his words sunk in. Finally, an officer spoke up.

"NO MORE DEAD COPS!!" he shouted. The rest of the room chorused in agreement and a reporter spoke up.

"WHERE IS THE BATMAN?" Harvey have a sigh as soon realized that there was no convincing them otherwise.

"So be it. Take the Batman into custody." Hanna gave a sigh and shook her head. "I am the Batman."

"What?" she gasped. There was no possible way. He had been in the closet when the Batman was fighting the Joker, he couldn't have been the Batman. She continued to watch the press conference, watching as they cuffed Dent and dragged him away. Hanna sighed and ran a hand through her hair. She was about to turn the T.V. channel, when he phone rang. She jumped a little and stood up to answer it, only to watch Danny run in and grab the phone.

"Tina?" he asked. Hanna shook her head, surprised that even with all the chaos going around, his mind was still on his 'girlfriend'.

"Oh, hi Aunt Rachel, Yeah, she's right here." Danny walked over and handed her the phone.

"Hello?" Hanna asked.

"I can not believe him! What is he thinking pulling a stunt like that?" Hanna chuckled.

"I assume you're talking about Harvey." There was a pause.

"Yeah, that… look, I'm coming over, I'll be there in a minute." Hanna raised an eyebrow.

"You only called me to tell me you were coming over?"

"Yes, I got to go, I'm getting out of the cab now." There was a click and Hanna turned off the phone. She shook her head at he surprisingly short conversation, not that she hadn't had rushed conversations before. There was a knock at the door and Hanna unlocked the dead bolt.

"Just come in Rachel." Hanna said, turning around and shutting off the T.V..

"You know, what if I wasn't Rachel? What if I was like… the Joker or something?" Rachel asked, walking in and closing the door.

"Yeah, because the Joker is really going to show up at my apartment." Rachel sighed and threw her purse and jacket on Hanna's couch.

"I am so mad at him!" Rachel snapped.

"The Joker?" Hanna asked, cleaning up a few toys off the floor.

"No, Br… Batman." Rachel told her.

"You're mad at Batman?" Rachel nodded.

"How can he just let Harvey take the fall like that? We all know he isn't Batman!" Hanna shrugged.

"I guess it is plausible. I mean, someone doing so much for the city for the day could possibly do even more at night." Rachel scoffed and sat down on the couch.

"He's not, Harvey would never go outside the law, he believes in it too much." Hanna sat down next to her, and laid her head back. "I mean, how could he do that to Harvey?"

"Batman?" Hanna asked.

"Who else would I be talking about?" Rachel asked. Hanna shrugged.

"I don't know. You know, maybe Batman just knows that if he get's caught, things really are going to get worse." Rachel nodded.

"Maybe." There was a silence before Hanna spoke.

"You hungry?" she asked.

"No. Do you mind going with me to see Harvey?"

Hanna shook her head. "Nope, just let me drop Danny off at my in-laws before we go." Rachel nodded and watched her stand up. Hanna walked down the hallway and stopped at Danny's door.

"Danny, come on honey, we're ready to go!" she called. Danny opened the door and scrunched his nose.

"Why can't I stay home by myself?" Hanna resisted the urge to roll her eyes as she shot her son a look.

"Because I said so, now let's go."

Danny gave a heavy sigh. "Fine, I'll go." He muttered.

"Good, now come on, let's go." She told him. Danny quickly made his way into the living room, and smiled upon seeing his Aunt Rachel.

"Hey Danny, how have you been?" Rachel asked.

"Fine, did I tell you about my girlfriend?" Rachel glanced up at Hanna, who rolled her eyes.

"You can tell her in the car, let's go!" Danny threw a frustrated huff at his mother, but continued out the door. Rachel gave a chuckle and walked him to Hanna's car. The rest of the ride was pretty much silent, except for the few comments Danny threw in here or there. Hanna was a little perturbed by the silence coming from her friend, she knew she was upset about Harvey, but she knew she wasn't upset with Harvey. The whole situation made Hanna uneasy. She should have moved out of the city when she had the chance.

Once Danny was dropped off at her in-laws, she began to drive toward the station. Rachel began to fiddle with the hem of her jacket, causing Hanna to tap the steering wheel. After a long minute Rachel spoke.

"You know… Harvey isn't really Batman." Hanna glanced over but turned her eyes back to the road.

"I figured as much." Rachel looked at her, her eyes betrayed a hint of panic.

"Do you know who is?" Hanna raised an eyebrow and turned into the police station.

"No… but I have a feeling that you do." She answered. Rachel looked down at her hands and bit her lip. When she looked up, her face now looked worried.

"Harvey asked me to marry him." She confessed. Hanna's jaw dropped as she looked at her best friend.

"What did you say?" she asked.

"I didn't answer him yet. But I'm going to say yes." Hanna smiled and hugged her.

"Oh, Rachel, I'm so excited for you. Once this is all blown over we have to plan your wedding." Rachel chuckled and pulled away.

"Thanks Hanna." Hanna and Rachel got out of the car and walked toward the station.

"What did you tell Bruce?" Hanna inquired. Rachel shrugged and opened the door.

"Nothing… yet. He'll know when the time is right." Hanna was about to say something when an officer cut in.

"Ms. Dawes… what can I help you with?"

"We're here to see Harvey Dent." The officer nodded and led the two women to the cells. Harvey walked out and shot a nod at Hanna.

"I'm sorry, I didn't have time to talk this through with you." He said to Rachel.

"Don't offer yourself as bait, Harvey." Rachel warned him. They began walking into the court yard.

"They're transferring me to central holding. This is the Joker's chance, and when he attacks, Batman will take him down." Rachel scoffed.

"No. This is too dangerous-" Rachel argued. They made their way toward the van, but paused when half the police force erupted in applause.

"Wow…" Hanna muttered. Rachel stopped but then continued.

"He's using you as bait- but he doesn't know if he can get the Joker he's failed so far." Harvey raised an eyebrow and turned toward her.

"How do you know what he's thinking?" He asked.

Rachel paused. "I just do, okay? Harvey, this isn't just about you, what about all the people counting on you to turn this city around? Tell everyone the truth-" He silenced her with a kiss, which made Hanna looked down as to not intrude.

"Rachel…" She whispered after a minute. Harvey broke away from Rachel and pulled out a coin.

"Heads I go through with it." Rachel rolled her eyes.

"Harvey, you can't leave a thing like that to chance!" he smirked and flipped the coin, which she caught.

"I don't." he told her. Rachel looked at the coin.

"You make your own luck." She muttered, seeing that both sides were heads. Hanna shook her head and looked up at Harvey who turned toward her.

"Make sure she's safe, Hanna." Hanna smiled.

"I'll do my best." She answered. Harvey smirked and sat down in the van, causing the police to shut the doors. Rachel gave a sigh and looked at Hanna.

"Why is it that all the men I tend to love walk out on me." Hanna shrugged.

"Could be worse… All the guys I love end up dead."

_

* * *

_

"I always feel like a dumb debutant when I dress up in this." Hanna muttered with distaste. Rachel sighed and continued to work on Hanna's hair, since something like that seemed to be out of her capabilities.

_"You look great, come on, it's Bruce's birthday." Hanna sighed and began to tap on the table lightly._

_"I know. I just hate dressing up like this. I liked your sweet sixteen better." Hanna replied, standing up when Rachel was done. Rachel smoothed her white strapless dress that hugged her waist, and the skirt was slanted so one side was longer than the other. She put some lip-gloss on and quickly checked to make sure her hair was curled._

_"You only liked it because you were the one who threw it." Hanna smirked as she remembered the look on her friends face when she realized her friend threw a party for her. Hanna took a look at her dark blue off the shoulder dress, which had a tight corset and a slit up the skirt that went a bit above her knees._

_"What can I say, I throw a great party." She said, twirling a loose strand of her hair._

_"Stop that, I just fixed it." Hanna rolled her eyes and walked out of the large bathroom and into the 'ball room', where a few guests were cultivating. All of the younger kids were now looking at her, making her feel uncomfortable. Rachel walked in next to her and raised an eyebrow._

_"Why is the mini trust fund brigade looking at you like that?" she whispered. Hanna shrugged._

_"No clue, though they are kind of scaring me." She admitted. Rachel just grabbed a hold of her arm and brought her to the punch bowl._

_"Maybe if we ignore them they'll leave us alone." Hanna raised an eyebrow but said nothing as she took a sip. She then stopped and took Rachel's drink from her. Rachel went to protest but Hanna cut her off._

_"It's spiked, with rum it tastes like." Rachel scrunched her nose and picked up a bottle of water. Before she could say anything else, a group of girls walked up to them._

_"Well, if it isn't the welfare twins trying to fit in with another party." A blonde big boobed girl snapped. Hanna pressed her lips together in order to not snap at her. Rachel rolled her eyes._

_"Come on Regina, don't you have anyone else to pick on?" Regina ignored her and looked right at Hanna._

_"Everyone knows that Paul Keller's uncle caught you and that Lance McCartney guy doing it in his mustang." Hanna gripped her water bottle tight and glared at the girl in front of her. She recalled the exact moment she was talking about, but the last thing they were going to do was have sex. Of course, they had been making out, and to his uncles defense, both their shirts were off, but the last thing they were going to do was have sex._

_"Well everyone is wrong, I didn't have sex with him." She snapped._

_"Whatever, I wonder what Bruce would think when one of his little angels is no longer an angel." Hanna exchanged a look with Rachel who looked very annoyed._

_"I really don't think he would care either way." Rachel hissed. Before Regina could reply, there was the sound of footsteps coming down stairs and applause erupting. Rachel and Hanna joined in half heartedly, since the mood seemed to have diminished. Bruce gave a small smile, and gave a small wave of his hand._

_"Thank you, thank you. I'm glad you all could make it, and I hope you are enjoying yourselves. I know I will." The crowd laughed. "So… yeah, let's have fun!" he said walking down the stairs._

_"Smooth as always." Rachel muttered. Regina turned toward the two of them and crossed her arms._

_"Just so you know, I will be wearing his mothers engagement ring by the time We're twenty seven." She stated. _

_Hanna clenched her water bottle once more, and was a bit surprised that she hadn't made the cap pop off. How dare she even suggest that! When it came to things that Bruce cherished more than life itself, it was things left over from his parents. The last thing he would part with would be his mothers engagement ring. That would be like handing over his father stethoscope to the first doctor he saw._

_"Yeah, maybe if he had a sudden personality change." Hanna hissed. Regina looked over and glared at her._

_"Your just jealous because you know it is going to happen." Hanna stepped forward._

_"And your delusional." She snapped._

_"You wish. You're just jealous I'm going to marry him and you're going to end up working for him, like your deadbeat mom." Hanna made a move to hit her, but Rachel grabbed her wrist and pulled her back._

_"Hanna, leave it. She's not worth it." Rachel hissed._

_"Oh she so is, I've been wanting to punch her plastic nose in since the third grade." Before Regina could speak, Bruce walked up to Rachel._

_"What's going on?" he asked. Before Hanna could say a word Regina spoke._

_"Bruce, baby. I was looking all over for you." He smirked at her._

_"Hey Gina, I'm glad you could've made it." Hanna pressed her lips together and turned around._

_"Where are you going?" Rachel asked._

_"If I stay here a minute longer I'm going to barf." Hanna replied. Rachel sighed and followed her away from the table and out into the balcony._

_"You know he's just trying to get into her pants. It's Bruce." Rachel told her._

_"I think we both know damn well that isn't Bruce. He has better standards than that." Hanna hissed. Rachel walked up to a bench and sat down, watching as her best friend continued to fume._

_"Hanna, why is this bothering you so much?" Rachel asked. Hanna crossed her arms and shifted her weight from one foot to another for a minute._

_"These people… a lot of them think they can just get whatever they want, and they can't. It's not fair, they don't have to worry about anything in life." Rachel raised an eyebrow and stood up._

_"Hanna, this isn't about Bruce… is it?" she asked. Hanna looked down._

_"No… it's not. Lance is in the hospital again, they say the leukemia is really getting bad." She confessed. Before she could say anything else, the doors opened._

_"Hey, there you guys are, you alright?" Bruce asked. Hanna nodded and walked toward him._

_"Just fine… come on, let's get back to the party." She told him, walking back into the manor. Bruce paused then looked back to Rachel._

_"She's not okay, is she?" Rachel shook her head, which caused him to sigh. "I didn't think so."_

_**

* * *

**_

Review Please!! Thank you!


	9. Chapter 9

_**I am back my friends. I apologize for taking so long to update. Between Marching band ending, College applications, and have a tiny bit of a writers block, I've been busy. But I am back now and will try and write as much as possible. I make no promises.**_

_**Anyway, I'm trying to get out of the Dark Knight plotline so I can start with my own. I tried to stay as faithful to the movie while still adding my own twist in there, even using the original script. I hope I was at least halfway successful.**_

_**Oh, I also got a message from Amsr, Sorry but I don't understand Spanish. I tried to get a translator but only got about half the message. Sorry, I didn't know how else to tell you.**_

_**Anyway, thanks to those who added this to their favorite lists and alert lists. A special thanks to those who reviewed, I really appreciate it.**_

_**Enjoy!**_

_**Disclaimer: I do not own The Dark Knight, it completely belongs to Christopher Nolan and Warner Brothers. I do own any OC's that are not familiar with the story. I also own some parts of the plot, not the whole thing. Please don't steal.**_

* * *

"Rachel, stop pacing, you're making me dizzy." Rachel sighed and sat down on Hanna's couch.

"I'm sorry, I'm worried about him." Hanna nodded and continued to go through some paperwork, since it seemed to be the only thing that could distract her. She glanced over to Danny, who was currently playing video games.

"You think those things are corrupting him?" Hanna asked softly. Rachel glanced over at Danny and shrugged.

"I think the video games are the least of your worries. If they don't corrupt him this city will." Hanna sighed and dropped her paper work on her coffee table.

"I was thinking about moving you know." Rachel raised an eyebrow.

"Where would you move?" she asked. Hanna shrugged and leaned back into couch.

"I'm not sure, somewhere far from Gotham, that's for sure." Rachel sighed and laid her head back against the couch.

"I wish I could move. My whole life is here though, I don't think I could go anywhere else." Hanna nodded.

"I know, I'm praying that once this Joker thing is done with, Gotham will be a bit better." Rachel turned toward her and raised an eyebrow.

"You think that's going to happen?" After a long pause Hanna shook her head and ran a hand over her face.

"No, I think that's just what I want to happen. I want things to get better. I want to be able to sleep at night without waking up to every little sound, worrying that it's some burglar. I want to be able to drop my son off at school and not worry about having a bomb threat that day. Hell, I just want to be able to walk in my house without worrying about whether it is safe to sleep in or not. I want Nathan to be here. I want you, Bruce, and I to be able to talk together without this weird cloud above our heads. I want…"

She trailed off and crossed her arms over her chest and looked down to her ring finger, where her wedding ring still lay. Rachel reached over and placed her head on her shoulder and a hand in her best friends. She thought about how much Hanna had gone through in the past year or so, how much she was fighting just to keep herself sane. It was becoming a daily battle for her to be happy, it wasn't fair.

"I want things, just for one, to be peaceful. I want one day that is tainted by death, crime, or some crazy guy in make-up." Rachel chuckled and patted her shoulder.

"One day, Hanna. One day it'll happen." A knock on the door prevented Hanna from saying anything else. She gave a sigh and opened the door, surprised to find Anna Ramirez standing in front of her.

"Lieutenant, what can I help you with?" she knew that Rachel was good friends with her, but she herself didn't know the woman herself.

"I'm here to see Miss Dawes, Ms. Sanders." Hanna nodded and Let Rachel walk to the door.

"Anna, what is it?" Rachel asked.

"We have the Joker, Harvey is asking you to come in and help him interrogate him. I'll give you the details on the way." Hanna shot her a skeptical look, but Rachel nodded.

"Sure, I suppose I'll see you later Hanna." Hanna grabbed her arm.

"Rachel, maybe you should just wait here for Harvey." Rachel raised an eyebrow.

"Hanna, what's the big deal?" Hanna shrugged and shot a look at Anna, who was now shifting her weight from foot to foot.

"No big deal, but you have to be careful now-a-days Rachel." Rachel rolled her eyes and grabbed her coat.

"I'll be fine. I'll call you tomorrow and we'll set up a date for dinner." Hanna pressed her lips together but nodded her head.

"Alright." Rachel gave her a quick hug and waved to Danny.

"Bye Hanna." She called, turning around and walking down the stairs.

"Bye Rachel." Hanna replied.

_

* * *

_

"Mattie, you said you would give Rachel and I a ride to the mall!" Mathew sighed and shook his head, he didn't have time for this.

_"Jesus, Hanna, Don't you have Bruce for that?" he asked. Hanna crossed her arms and pouted._

_"He's at lacrosse. Come on, we only have two cars, dad is using one and you are using the other, I want to go to the mall." Hanna complained. Rachel sat from her spot on the couch and shook her head. Mathew turned toward his younger sister and handed her a few dollars._

_"Take the monorail, or the bus." He instructed. Hanna gave a angry huff but stuffed the money in her pocket regardless._

_"You want to send you baby sister and her best friend off on a bus, with a ton of people who might be criminals. That's so cold." Rachel tried to hold in a snort, and succeeded, but shook her head._

_"Nice Han," she commented. Hanna said nothing and continued to look at her brother, who was glaring down at her._

_"Hanna, grow up, you know that the buses aren't that bad. I mean, there are even some alley ways that are fine." He told her._

_"Tell that to Bruce." Hanna snapped. There was a long pause before Matthew gave a frustrated sigh._

_"Fine, I'll tell mom I'm taking you." He muttered, moving to the kitchen. Rachel stood up and walked up to her friend._

_"That was… a bit harsh Hanna." Rachel said. Hanna shrugged._

_"It's partially true. Besides, I hate taking the bus, there is always that weird guy on the bus who gives us weird looks." Rachel chuckled but nodded._

_"True, maybe we should wear masks when we go on the buses." Rachel suggested. Hanna raised an eyebrow a her friend and placed her hands on her hips._

_"And let the world miss out on seeing all of this?" She asked, gesturing to herself. Rachel gave a laugh. "I don't think so, this is just too awesome to le everyone miss out on."_

_"So modest Hanna." Matthew remarked, walking into the living room._

_"You know it's true." Rachel laughed at Hanna's remark and put her jacket on._

_"Come on, let's just go to the mall, wouldn't want those guys at the mall to miss out on you." Hanna smirked and grabbed her jacket as well._

_"You know it."_

* * *

Hanna always trusted her gut feeling, no matter what it may have been. It had gotten her through some of the biggest decisions of her life. This gut feeling, however, was one she didn't want. She just knew something was wrong. There was so much commotion going on in the city it was crazy. There were rumors that a couple of buildings blew up, and a few hours later the police blocked some of the roads.

This is when Hanna began getting worried. The police happened to block one of the roads to the supermarket, which prevented her from getting dinner that night. So she settled with grabbing a frozen pizza for dinner, but she was still perturbed. She heard from her neighbor that her daughter just drove by the police station, which was now half blown to the ground. That added to the fact that she hadn't heard from anyone what was going on, she was going crazy. So she helped Danny into bed and took a shower of her own, and tried to settle down.

Now she was pacing the living room and running a hand through her thick dark hair. She hated this. She picked up her phone and tried Rachel's cell, but it seemed as if the phone was no longer working, which worried her. He next person she called was Harvey, but of course he didn't answer either. So she was stuck with being worried. There was a brief moment where she contemplated calling Bruce, but she doubted he would've known anything and decided against it. Finally, after an hour, there was a phone call. She picked up immediately.

"Hello?" she asked. There was no answer on the other line except light sobs, which got her worried. "Hello? Who is this?" she asked.

"Hanna…" the voice said, though it seemed broken.

"Yes… who is calling?" There was no reply for a moment, but she soon got an answer from the caller.

"This is Mrs. Dawes, Rachel's mother." The gut feeling began to worsen.

"Oh, Mrs. Dawes, it's nice to hear from you. What can I help you with?" there was a small fit of sobs.

"I… I don't know if you um… got a call or not but… uh…" she broke into another fit of sobs, this time much louder.

"Mrs. Dawes, what's wrong? What happened?" Hanna asked. Mrs. Dawes took a breath and paused. When she finally answered her voice was quiet.

"She's dead, Hanna. My baby girl is gone." Time stopped as the news settled in. Rachel couldn't be dead, she was just there not even a few hours ago. How could she be dead?

"Are you sure? Maybe she just isn't answering her phone, or maybe she just got hurt. You have to be sure about these things!" the sound of Mrs. Dawes hysterical crying was heard, and she knew it was true.

"I'm sorry Hanna, please believe me. She really is…" she trailed off for a moment. Hanna felt her phone shaking and she knew that if she didn't get off it soon it would drop out of her hand. "I'm so sorry honey, I have to go. Take care."

"Mrs. Dawes-" she was cut off by the dial tone, and she let her phone drop to the floor as she fell onto the couch.

_Not Rachel. _She thought. _Anyone but Rachel. _Hanna took a glance at a picture on a shelf. The picture was of her and Rachel on her wedding day. Her dress was a large princess dress, and seemed to hug her upper half perfectly. Her hair was up in some elaborate bun, while her make-up was fair. Rachel stood next to her, her hair down in curls and had a green dress hugging her curves.

She remembered the exact moment the picture was taken. Rachel had made a comment about her dress not fitting through the door of the church, to which she gave a sarcastic remark. They both laughed and the photographer shot a picture. Soon after she recalled her best friend asking if she wish Bruce were there. Hanna wasn't sure how to respond. So she said she was just going to live in the moment and not worry about the past, which seemed to be suitable.

Tears were now permanently stained on her cheeks as memories began to flow back at a rapid pace. This had to be a sick and terrible joke. Any moment Rachel would call and say that she was sorry, but she was alive. Yet as the hours passed, she knew it was no joke, and her best friend was really gone. Hanna curled up on the couch and began to shake violently, it was if the grief of all that had happened had finally caught up with her and was taking her over. Her world was crashing around her, and she was going down with it.

_

* * *

_

"Look what the rat dragged in." Hanna cringed at the sound of the voice, but turned toward the owner.

_"I believe it's, 'Look who the cat dragged in,' not rat, Regina." Regina scoffed._

_"No, because not even a rat would go near you." Hanna rolled her eyes and continued to go through her locker, looking for her band folder and drum sticks._

_"I don't have time for you, Regina, what do you want?" she asked. She gave a small smile of satisfaction when she found her sticks._

_"I just thought you should know that I heard about your boyfriend." Hanna froze when she realized who she was talking about. She clenched her drum sticks and slammed her locker door._

_"Piss off." Hanna snapped. She went to turn away but Regina blocked her exit._

_"Could he really not stand you that much? So much so that he had to die to get away from you?" Regina's words hit her like a ton of bricks, and tears stung her eyes._

_"Fuck off." Hanna hissed._

_"Oh, did I strike a nerve? Awe, I hope I didn't hurt your feelings." Before Hanna could say anything else, a voice cut in._

_"Come on Regina, bother someone else." Regina scrunched her nose._

_"No one asked you, Dawes." Rachel walked up and put a comforting hand on her best friends shoulder._

_"Don't you have something better to do? Like stare at yourself?" Rachel hissed._

_"Please, I already know I look fantastic, I don't need all your negativity." Hanna glared at her._

_"Could've fooled me, it looks like you just rolled out of bed. Where did you get that shirt, snob wannabe shack?" Regina crossed her arms._

_"Listen here you little ragamuffin, don't you dare talk to me like that, or I will-"_

_"You'll what?" a deep voice cut through. All three girls turned to watch a familiar figure walk toward them. Regina wiped the scowl off her face and smiled._

_"Bruce… baby, I was wondering where you went off to."_

_"Cut the crap Regina. Go bother someone else." Regina frowned._

_"Bruce, what are you talking about?" she asked. Bruce rolled his eyes and walked up to Hanna._

_"Don't listen to her, she's just a stuck up bitch." Regina scoffed._

_"Fine, I see how it is. Let's see how long my dad is donating to Wayne enterprises now." She hissed, walking off. Hanna knew better, and knew she would be back soon to 'get back' at her, but she wasn't worried. She felt Rachel's arms around her shoulder and leaned into her hug._

_"It's alright, Hanna, she's just a bitch." Hanna said nothing as she looked down._

_"Hanna, I'll take care of her, just… forget it ever happened." Bruce told her. Hanna glanced up at him, her eyes meeting his for a brief second before he walked away. Rachel gave her another hug and smiled._

_"Let's get some ice cream and eat our brains out." Hanna chuckled._

_"Sound's like a plan." Rachel nodded._

_"Then we can plot ways to burn her five hundred dollar Dolce and Gabbana bag." They turned to walk away and Hanna wrapped and arm around her friends shoulder._

_"Don't ever leave me, I don't know what I'd do without you." Rachel shrugged and smiled at her._

_"Don't worry about it, I'll always be here."_

* * *

"Mrs. Dawes… is there anything else I can do?" Hanna asked. Mrs. Dawes shook her head and wiped away a few more tears.

"No, I think that's all. You should go home, you've been here for practically two days." Hanna sighed. She came over with her mother to help Mrs. Dawes try and cope, which seemed to help a little. Her mother had left to go pick up Danny, but got stuck in the traffic trying to get out of the city, so ended up going to her home.

Hanna decided she was going to stay in the city with her mother and try and get out in a few days. She could stick it out for a little longer, right? Either way, she was stuck at Rachel's old home taking shelter before things got worse in the city. She debated calling Bruce and asking if she could spend a few nights at his penthouse, but she dismissed that idea and figured her house would be safe as any.

"Hanna, You need to pick up your son and go home. Please, don't let simple moments like putting your son to be slip through your fingers." Mrs. Dawes told her. Hanna gave a sigh and nodded.

"Alright, I'll go. Do you want me to do anything before I go?" Mrs. Dawes shook her head and stood up as well.

"Just go home sweetie, and be careful." Hanna gave her a quick hug and a quick goodbye then went to go pick up her son. She got in her car and stopped for a moment, taking a deep breath and collecting herself. She had to get out of here, she had to find a new place to raise her son. The problem was, she wasn't sure she could. Her whole life was in Gotham, how could she just leave it all behind?

She pushed those thoughts out of her head and tried to turn the car on, only to have it make some noise and then shut off. She tired again and still got the same result. After a few more tries, she gave a frustrated huff and banged her head on the steering wheel. This was not her past few weeks. Another sigh escaped her lips before she got out of the car, and began her trek to her in-laws. Maybe they would let her spend the night so she didn't have to go out with her son after dark.

A breeze blew toward her, and she gave a small shiver, cursing the fact that she forgot a jacket. She stopped for a moment and debated on if she wanted to go back or not, but as she looked at her watch she figured she might as well move on. However, before she could move on, a voice cut through the night like a knife.

"A little late to be walking alone, isn't it?" she went to turn around, only to be pulled into an alley and thrown against a wall. She froze upon hearing the click of a gun. "I guess it doesn't matter for someone who is league with the mob."

"What?" Hanna asked, squinting to see who it was.

"Don't play dumb… it doesn't suit you." The voice hissed, taking a step toward her. As soon as her eyes met his brown, she knew who it was. It was the sight of his burnt flesh that made her gasp.

"Jesus, Harvey." She muttered. her hand flew to her mouth as her eyes scanned his face, or what was left of it. "What have they done to you?" she whispered.

"Like you don't know." He hissed, pointing the gun at her again.

"What are you talking about?"

"I know Ramirez picked her up at your place. You handed her off to them!" he hissed. Hanna shook her head vigorously.

"No, no, no, I didn't know. Rachel insisted on leaving with her, I swear. Oh god, Harvey if I would have known-" Harvey reached out and his hand clasped around her throat. In shock she grabbed onto his hand, as if that would make him stop. He glared at her for a moment before loosening his hand, causing her to taking in a shaky breath. When she was done coughing her moved the gun to her head.

"Have you ever had to listen the person you love most die?" he asked. She pressed her lips together and felt the prick of tears sting her eyes.

"Harvey…" she said softly.

"Where would your little boy be?" she felt her heart stop and her limbs freeze. It was then when she felt tears fall down her cheeks and she snapped back to reality.

"No, Harvey please, not my son! Not Danny, he's all I have left now!" she cried.

"Rachel was all I have left!" he screamed. She flinched and let her gaze fall to the ground.

"Danny's her god son, Harvey." She whispered. For a brief moment he froze, but it soon passed and he pulled out a coin.

"You live." He stated, showing her one side of a coin. "You die." The other side was scorched black, finally giving the coin two different sides. He flipped the coin and caught it in his palm, hiding it from sight. Hanna's eyes never left his palm until he showed her the side.

"Tough luck," he muttered. Hanna stared at the scorched side of the coin and felt her heart sink to her stomach. She let tears fall freely from her eyes as he lifted the gun and pointed it at her chest.

"Harvey, I'm begging you, don't do this." She pleaded. She couldn't leave Danny, she promised.

"See you in hell." He whispered cocking the gun. She then quickly tried to move to the side, in order to move out of the bullets way. The gun went off and she immediately felt a sharp pain hit her right shoulder, which caused her to fall to the ground. Her hand reached up to her shoulder and she felt the warm oozing liquid of her own blood stain her hand.

"God." She whispered looking at her hand. Harvey pointed the gun at her face one more time and went to shoot the gun, only to realize there were no bullets left.

"Damn it." He muttered. He paused for a moment before grabbing her by her shirt and grabbing onto the opposite end of the gun. Hanna looked at him carefully while trying not to show that she was in terrible pain.

"I hope you die a slow and painful death, like the one I am going through right now." He snapped. He lifted the gun and slammed it against her forehead, causing her to black out immediately.

_

* * *

_

Hanna hated hospitals. She always had, and she probably always would. As soon as you entered the place, you could feel the depression and the weight of disease. It always smelled weird too. She wasn't sure if that was all the sterile cleaning products, of the smell of people dieing, as depressing as that sounded. Maybe she hated them mostly because she had had the horrible experience of coming here when she was a child. Between all the shots she got for vaccines, and the horrible experience of dealing with her broken arm, she hated hospitals. So she did her best to keep away from them.

_Today, however, she was having no such luck. She was sitting in the waiting room, Bruce right next to her, with her leg shaking a bit. If it wasn't for Mattie and his wife, she wouldn't even be here. She didn't want to blame him, but she was stuck here and needed someone to blame. So she sat in her uncomfortable white chair, jiggling her leg up and down and cursing her brother for keeping her here._

_A warm hand was placed on her lower thigh, causing her to jump and look over. Her eyes met Bruce's warm brown, causing her to feel a little better. She then remembered that his leg was on her thigh and she blushed a deep scarlet. He didn't remove his hand, and she didn't remove it either._

_"It'll be over soon enough, you can stop being so jittery. Once the baby is born I'll drive you home." She smirked._

_"You mean you will have Alfred drive us home." He chuckled and moved his hand off her thigh._

_"Sure, whatever works." He moved his arm so it laid on the back of her chair, giving her the urge to lean against him. She resisted it and looked around._

_"Where is Rachel? I thought she said she would be back later." Hanna muttered, crossing her arms over her chest._

_"She will be, she probably got held up at a vending machine." Bruce told her. Hanna shrugged and leaned down in her chair a little._

_"Maybe…" Bruce looked down at her, watching as she began to silently play with a piece of her hair. Her leg had begun to bounce up and down again, and he nudged his knee with hers in order to make her stop. She looked over and mumbled a sorry, as she continued to look around._

_"So, I heard you agreed to go out with James Oliver." She shrugged._

_"Yeah. He seems nice enough." Bruce raised an eyebrow._

_"So you're pretty much settling." Hanna laughed and leaned her head back, inadvertently on his arm._

_"It's high school Bruce, I'm not settling, I'm just agreeing to go out on a date. I need to move on and not dwell on Lance anymore, don't you think?" He shrugged. Before anything else could be said, Rachel walked in and handed Hanna a cup of coffee._

_"So, any news?" she asked, sitting next to Bruce._

_"Just that they are trying to get the baby out soon, and it will be any minute now." Hanna replied. Rachel nodded and took a sip of her own drink._

_"I wonder who they will name the god parents." Rachel asked out loud._

_"Probably Olivia's siblings. Since they are like… really, really old." Bruce muttered._

_"They are not really, really old. They are in their early thirties late twenties." Hanna defended._

_"They're older than us." Hanna rolled her eyes and looked toward the door, where she saw her brother emerge. He wore some weird cap on his head, along with what looked to be a surgical suit. In his hands he held a pink bundle, which he was smiling down at. Hanna stood up and walked over to him, followed by her friends. He stopped in front of her and looked up, their identical blue eyes meeting._

_"It's a girl." He said quietly, tears glistening in his eyes. Hanna chuckled and nodded._

_"I sort of figured, with the pink blanket and all." She muttered. Rachel smiled down at the newborn baby._

_"She's so cute… what's her name?" Rachel asked._

_"Kelly Anne Grey," he told them. Hanna smiled down at her niece, her blue eyes meeting the small babies bright blue._

_"Her eyes are a little light." Hanna muttered._

_"They said it could possibly change in her first year." Hanna nodded._

_"Isn't she cute Bruce?" Rachel asked. Bruce nodded._

_"Very." He agreed, looking down at her. Matt held out Kelly to Hanna._

_"Here, you want to hold her?" he asked. Hanna bit her lip._

_"Can we wait till we're out of the asylum of death?" she asked. Matt rolled his eyes and moved Kelly forward, placing her in Hanna's arms._

_"See, it's not that bad." Hanna smiled and looked at the blond peach fuzz accumulating at the top of her niece's head._

_"Hey Kelly, welcome to Gotham." Hanna whispered. Matt smirked as he watched his baby sister hold his newborn daughter._

_"You know, Olivia and I would like it if you were the god mother." Hanna looked up at her brother in shock._

_"What?" she asked. Matthew laughed._

_"We want you to be her god mother." Hanna smiled widely and nodded._

_"Okay, sure." She agreed. Mattie smiled._

_"Great." Hanna nodded and placed Kelly back in Matt's arms._

_"Alright, I got to go." Matt raised an eyebrow._

_"So soon?" he asked._

_"I hate hospitals."_

* * *

Everything was heavy. Her arms were heavy, her legs were heavy, her head was heavy. She briefly wondered if this was what death felt like. The dull sound of monitors buzzing and some annoying beeping sound. After a moment she decided she would attempt to move her head, that only resulted in a sharp pain coming from her shoulder. It surged through her body and seemed to awaken a pain in her head. This couldn't be death, it was much too painful.

After a few more seconds, she decided she would chance opening her eyes. As soon as she did, light surged through her lids and made her shut them once more. No, this couldn't be death. If it was, she was sure she had to be in hell.

A few more minutes and she forced her eyes to open and look around. Thankfully, or not, she wasn't dead. She was in a hospital room. The humming she heard was the humming of machines pumping all sorts of things into her. Her arms were lined with needles stuck in almost every vein she had, probably contributing to her arms being heavy.

She felt a weight shift on her leg, and she looked down. There slept Danny, half of him curled on top of her lead, the other half barely on the bed. She smiled lightly and continued to look around the room. She saw her mother sitting in a chair, her glasses on and a book in her hand. Even though she was reading, she could see the lines of worry etched on her face.

"Mom." Hanna's raspy voice called. She was surprised her mother could even hear her, due to her voice being so worn and quiet. Her mother looked up and practically ran over.

"Hanna, oh Hanna. You're awake." She whispered, leaning over and kissing her forehead. The pain in Hanna's head erupted again and she flinched.

"Oh, ouch." Hanna whispered. Her mother frowned.

"I'm sorry, I forgot about that." She apologized. Hanna shook her head and watched as a doctor walked in. He looked quite tired, as if he hadn't slept for a few days. Though she was sure hardly anyone in this city slept anymore.

"Mrs. Sanders, good to see you awake." He said, taking a hold of her clipboard.

"Hi." Hanna muttered.

"How are you feeling?" he asked, walking over and checking her eyes.

"Uh, alright. My shoulder and head hurt, and a lot of other things are sore." She confessed. He nodded and checked her heart rate.

"Yes, we expected as much. You were shot in your shoulder, the bullet blew right through. It seems that there might have been some extra shards on the bullet, that was possibly caused by a jam in the bullet before hand. You have a few graze marks around the wound and on you shoulder, but no major organs were injured, luckily. You also have a cut on your forehead from what looks to be a high impact blow, possibly from a blunt object. This resulted in a mild concussion." Hanna blinked a few times and looked at her shoulder.

"Oh wow." She muttered. Her whole shoulder was bandaged, and was still pretty sore. She looked back to the doctor who was watching her carefully.

"You were lucky that someone was walking by and found you. They called an ambulance and you were brought here right away. We were able to give you enough blood to sustain you through surgery." Hanna furrowed her eyebrows.

"Who found me?" The doctor shrugged.

"We're not sure, someone just called it in and then left you." Hanna looked down at her son and smiled softly.

"When can I go home?" Hanna asked. The doctor wrote a few things on the chart then looked back at her.

"We'll let you know. Not for a while though, just to be warned." Hanna nodded.

"Thank you doctor," she replied, though her voice was quiet. The doctor nodded and walked out of the room, leaving the group alone. Hanna sighed and looked over to her mother.

"How long have I been out?" Hanna asked.

"About three days, they weren't sure you were going to make it." Her mother confessed. Hanna used her good arm and ran a hand through her hair. She then looked at the T.V. that was talking about something like a funeral.

"What happened?" Hanna asked. Her mother glanced up at the television then back at her.

"The joker tried to blow up two boats, but failed in the end. Then the batman killed Harvey Dent, could you believe it!" Hanna's eyes went wide.

"He did what?" she asked.

"Yeah, and a few other people two. A cop, a driver, Sal Maroni was hurt pretty bad. Anna Ramirez was found in a alley with a concussion too. The Batman hurt all those people, and we thought he was going to help the city, not kill cops." Hanna stared at her sheet's in complete shock.

"How is that possible?" she asked softly. Her mother raised an eyebrow.

"What?" Hanna shook her head and watched as Danny began to wake up.

"Nothing." She muttered. Danny sat up and rubbed his eyes and then turned to face Hanna, smiling widely when he saw she was awake.

"MOM!" Danny cried, throwing himself at her. She groaned in pain but pulled him closer to her. She was so thankful that she hadn't been walking with him that night, or he might have been in a bed next to her, or worse.

"Danny, I'm so happy you're alright." She whispered, tears rolling down her cheeks. Danny pulled away and smiled, his eyes almost as tired as the doctors.

"I was so scared that you weren't going to make it." He told her. She placed a hand on his cheek and smiled at him.

"I promised I wasn't going to leave… right?" he smiled and hugged her again.

"I love you." Hanna looked up, her eyes meeting the strained look of Jim Gordon.

"I love you too." She told him. He pulled away and turned around, watching as the commissioner walked in.

"Mrs. Sanders, Mrs. Grey," he said curtly.

"What can we help you with, Commissioner?" Hanna's mother asked.

"I just have a few questions for Mrs. Sanders, it shouldn't take long." He told her.

"She just woke up, must it happen now?" Hanna placed a hand on her mothers arm. She then tapped Danny's shoulder and he turned toward her.

"Danny, why don't you take grandma and get something to eat?" He nodded and jumped off the bed.

"Hanna, are you-"

"Mom, I'm fine. Go ahead." Hanna turned her attention to Jim and waited for her family to leave. He then walked toward her and let his eyes drop to the ground.

"Can you tell me what happened the night you were shot?" he asked. She nodded.

"I was walking to my in-laws house to get my son, when I was pulled into an alley way by…" she trailed off. Jim raised an eyebrow and looked at her.

"By who? Mrs. Sanders?" he asked. She looked up at him and thought about it for a moment or two before she answered.

"Just some mugger, I think." She muttered. She knew damn well who really shot her, but she couldn't bring herself to say it. If she told anyone that Harvey Dent was the one who shot her, she would be called crazy, and probably have to go through a bunch of unneeded gossip. She couldn't bring that upon Danny.

"A mugger? What did he look like?" Jim asked. She could tell by his tone that he didn't believe her, but she couldn't bring herself to tell him the truth.

"I don't remember. His face just appears disfigured in my mind." Jim watched her for a moment, almost as if he knew exactly who she was talking about, but said nothing.

"Alright, Mrs. Sanders-"

"Grey," she corrected. He raised an eyebrow.

"I'm sorry?"

"Ms. Grey… I'm changing my name back." She told him. He nodded.

"Very well, I wish you a speedy recovery Ms. Grey." She nodded.

"Thank you commissioner, I wish you luck with everything going on." He offered her a half hearted smile.

"Thanks, we're going to need it."

_

* * *

_

Alert, Favorite, and Review, I appreciate it.


	10. Chapter 10

_Just for you! A day early Thanksgiving gift. If you don't celebrate Thanksgiving, then it's just an early gift for you. lol._

_Anyway, I just got the new Star Trek movie on DVD, one of the best movies ever! I also saw the new twilight movie. It was… okay, if you a preteen, or secretly a romantic at heart. I really liked the parts where the guys weren't wearing any shirts. XP_

_So, thanks to all who reviewed, I love reading them. Thanks to everyone who added this to their favorite list and alerts list. I appreciate it._

_Enjoy!!!_

_

* * *

_

**Bruce POV**

_If there was one thing Bruce was grateful for, it was that he didn't have to watch Rachel die. Of course he was sure hearing her voice over that phone was going to cause him nightmares, and god only knows what Harvey had went through, but at least he didn't have to see her. It was bad enough he would still have the occasional nightmare of his parent's death._

_He thought this over as he ran through an alley, stopping midway through. How on earth he had forgotten to put gas in his bat pod was beyond him. Yet here he was, actually running through the streets in order to get home._

_After a moment, he turned and began to walk down the alley, stopping when he got closer to a figure on the ground. He surveyed it from afar for a moment, before realizing that it was a body, and they were bleeding heavily. He quickly ran over and kneeled down next to the person, careful turning them so he could see who it was._

_"No," he breathed upon seeing her face. He quickly looked at her wound and began to try and dress it as best as he could._

_"Not Hanna too, not Hanna too." He whispered. After a moment he dialed the police, telling them where to find her and that she didn't have much long left. He hung up before they could ask his name, then focused his attention on her. She was bleeding heavily from her shoulder, and had a pretty bad gash on her forehead._

_"Hanna, come on, you have to make it." He placed a hand on her cheek and let his eyes take in every detail he could. She was tired, no doubt from all the trouble that was going on in the city, but she looked like she hadn't slept well in weeks. It didn't help that she was deathly pale either. Bruce sighed and let one gloved hand smooth her dark hair, causing her to stir just slightly._

_"Bruce." His name was barely audible, but it struck a nerve with him._

_"You're going to be okay, just hold on Hanna." He told her. The sound of the ambulance was near, signaling him to get moving. Her took one more look at her before running off._

* * *

**Hanna POV.**

Of course it had to be a bright and sunny day. Only a day as depressing as it was would be sunny and bright. Hanna took a glance down at her son, who was now closing in on the age of ten in seven months. He was growing so fast, it was hard to really think that in a few years she would be raising a teenager. She was pulled out of her daze when a woman walked up to her, a sad smile etched on her face.

"Hanna, it's good to see you again. I haven't seen you since… high school?" Hanna smiled and placed a hand on her sons shoulder, causing him to stand up straighter.

"Leona, how has it been?"

"Fine, until just recently of course."

"Of course." Hanna agreed. "I didn't know you still kept in touch with Rachel." Leona nodded, her gaze resting on her arm sling for a moment before looking back up.

"I worked as a secretary in Rachel's office. So we talked a bit. Though, it's been a while since I've heard about you."

"Rachel kept Work and business separate, I'm sure you know that." Hanna told her.

"Of course, it's just weird seeing you now after not hearing about you for some time." Hanna gave a small awkward nod.

"Yeah, I feel the same." She told her. Leona glanced down at Danny, then looked back up at Hanna.

"Who is this?" Leona asked. Hanna used her good arm to push her son forward.

"Leona, this is my son, Daniel Sanders. Danny, this is an old friend of mine. Leona Jefferson." Danny shook hands with her.

"Pleasure to meet you, Miss Jefferson." Leona smiled.

"How cute, it's like he's a little person." She told Hanna. Danny pulled his hand away and looked up at his mother, who had her lips pressed together.

"Danny, why don't you go ask Alex if he wants to play." Danny scrunched his nose.

"But Alex is five!" Hanna shot him a look.

"Danny," she warned. He nodded and walked off. Leona chuckled.

"Wow, I didn't know you were a mom." She said.

"Yeah, almost ten years now." Leona looked at Danny then looked back to Hanna.

"So, who was the lucky guy who knocked you up?" she asked. Hanna's eyes went wide.

"Excuse me?"

"It was probably Bruce right? I always knew if it was going to happen to you, Bruce would be the one to do it." Leona told her.

"Do what?" a deep voice asked. Hanna turned around and almost dropped to the floor.

"Speak of the devil." Leona said, smiling widely. Bruce gave a polite nod.

"Leona, long time no see." He muttered. Hanna frowned at his appearance. Of course he wore the stylish Armani suit, and his hair was slicked back. Other than that, he looked a mess. He was extremely pale, with dark circles under his eyes. But what scared her the most was his eyes. They were still the same brown, but somehow they seemed so dead and void of any life.

"Bruce…" Hanna whispered. His eyes centered on her, and she almost shivered from how cold they were.

"Bruce, I must say, you and Hanna make a cute kid!" Leona told them. Hanna's head shot her way, a look of shock permanently stuck on her face. Bruce's eyes also went wide.

"I, um… I'm sorry, what was that?" he asked. Hell, even his voice sounded dead.

"Danny of course. You guys must have changed his last name to keep the press off your butts." Hanna never wanted to slap her as much as she did now. Typical Leona, always jumping to conclusions and never letting anyone explain themselves.

"No, no. Leona, Danny is not Bruce's son. I was married, that's when I had Danny, with my husband." Leona nodded.

"Oh, who is your husband?"

"Sergeant Nathan Sanders. He was killed in combat a couple years ago." Hanna explained. Leona frowned.

"Oh, that's so sad. I'm sorry for your loss." Hanna resisted the urge to roll her eyes and nodded.

"Thanks Leona." Hanna glanced at Bruce as he watched Leona take a sip of her drink.

"Oh, I'll be right back, don't have fun without me." Leona told them, running off. Once she was a good distance away, Hanna focused on Bruce.

"So, how have you been?" she asked quietly. Bruce simply shrugged.

"Fine, I suppose." He answered. _Liar!_ she thought. She looked down and let her hand fiddle with her shawl.

"Good, good." He looked at her shoulder.

"Are you alright?" he asked. There was a small hint of concern in his voice, but she simply shrugged.

"Yeah, you wouldn't believe me if I told you. I'm okay though." He nodded. There was a silence between them.

"So… uh…" she looked up and their eyes met.

"Bruce… are you sure you are alright? You look like you haven't slept in months." She commented. She reached up her good hand and let her hand rest on his shoulder. He forced a less than half hearted smile on his face and grabbed her hand.

"Yeah, I'm… fine. Things have just been tough." Hanna nodded and gave a light squeeze to his hand.

"I know this is hard on you, but Rachel wouldn't want you to go on like this." Bruce said nothing and downed his brandy.

"Sure." Hanna sighed and looked at him worried.

"Bruce, I don't want to see you go down this road. Not again." She whispered.

"I'm not going down any road Hanna. You don't have to worry about it, you aren't my mother." Hanna grabbed his second brandy glass and slammed it on the table. He glared at her but said nothing.

"No, just a worried friend." She hissed. Before he had a chance to reply Leona came back.

"Sorry, I just saw Jennifer Kang, from our algebra class. She's married and has her third one on the way. Can you believe it?" Leona asked. Hanna sighed.

"No, not at all." Bruce grabbed his glace once more and downed half of it.

"You know, it's so sad about Rachel and Harvey. I guess if they were still alive they would be planning their wedding by now." Leona mused. Bruce's eyebrows furrowed.

"What?" he asked. Hanna rolled her eyes and glared at Leona, almost daring her to speak.

"You didn't know? Harvey proposed! They were going to get married. They make such a cute couple, well… they made a cute couple." Bruce paused for a moment before he put his drink down.

"Excuse me." He muttered, walking off. Hanna gave a frustrated sigh before glaring at the other woman.

"Great going Leona." She hissed.

"What?" Leona asked. Hanna ran after Bruce, pausing for a moment when she got out the door. She saw him walk into an alley right next to the restaurant and she followed him.

"Bruce, wait!" he stopped and turned to glare at her.

"You knew! You knew that they were going to get married!" he accused. Hanna wanted to look down in shame, but realized she had nothing to be ashamed of.

"Yes, I knew. As soon as all that was going on with the mob and the Joker she was planning to marry him." Bruce ran a hand through his hair.

"She lied to me. She said we'd be together when I was done." He muttered. Hanna raised an eyebrow.

"Done what?" she asked. He shook his head and looked down.

"Doesn't matter. She told me that we would be the ones getting married." Hanna scoffed and wanted to cross her arms, but her sling prevented her from that.

"God, grow up!" she shouted. Bruce's head shot up and his eyes were shocked.

"What?" he asked.

"You are such a child, you knew that they were in love! Why would you think she would just leave him for you?"

"Because I asked her, because she loved me!" Hanna wanted to smack him, she got enough courage to walk up to him, but couldn't bring herself to smack him.

"Damn it Bruce, you are not a teenager anymore. You cannot get whatever you want just because you want it! She may have loved you, but she said yes to Harvey and you are just going to have to get over that fact." She snapped.

"You're really one to talk, Hanna Grey. How long were you in love with me before you finally called it quits. You are just like me!" he shouted.

"Jesus Bruce, you're the same spoiled child you were as a kid. You haven't changed a bit!" Bruce clenched his fists.

"I am not spoiled, I have lost everything!" he stated. Tears began to form behind Hanna's eyes.

"You and a thousand other people in this city! What about Mrs. Dawes, who just buried the last remaining member of her family? What about Harvey's parent's, who just lost their only son? Don't sit there and bitch that you have nothing. I have lost my best friend, my husband, my father, and had to watch my brothers family disappear from under him. Don't tell me you have lost everything." She told him. When he looked up, their eyes met and she saw the tears that had made their way to his eyes.

"You have your mother, your brother is still alive. You have Danny, and all your friends. Who do I have?" he yelled. Hanna paused and shook her head.

"You have Alfred…" Bruce shook his head.

"I lost everything when Rachel died. I have no one." He whispered. Tears began to pour from her eyes as the weight of his words hit her.

"What about me?" she asked softly. He looked at her but said nothing. After another minute she spoke again. "I guess that answers it."

"Hanna…" Bruce said quietly. What could he have said? She shook her head and wiped a few tears off her cheeks.

"Bruce… I'm not the best of friends in the world, I know that. But I care… isn't that enough?" Bruce wiped his eyes and looked down.

"Listen… I-"

"I don't care. I can't care. I think the thing that hurts the most is that I was there the whole time… and you didn't even give a second glance. And I don't even know why." She whispered. They were engulfed in a brief silence before he spoke once more.

"You weren't Rachel." He answered simply. If words could rip a heart out of a chest, she was sure those words would have done it. Tear fell freely from her eyes as his words sunk deeper and deeper into her mind. The rang over and over again, like a broken record, and she had no way to stop it.

"Mom?" the voice cut through the thick silence like a knife to butter. Hanna knew the voice but didn't turn around immediately.

"What is it Danny?" she asked.

"Dinner is almost over, can we leave?" he asked. Bruce glanced over at the boy, and then back at her. Hanna nodded and wiped the tears away from her eyes.

"Yeah, I'll be inside in a second." She told him. He nodded and walked back inside, not before shooting a look a Bruce.

"Hanna-"

"I hope you grow up soon Bruce, because now you really don't have anyone looking over your shoulder. Since everyone you know and care about has died with Rachel." She said coldly. Bruce would've flinched if he hadn't been so drunk, so instead he simply looked at the ground. After a second Hanna turned around and made her way back into the restaurant.

_

* * *

_

"Okay, so if you had to marry anyone in the school or die, who would you marry?" Rachel asked.

_"Probably you or Hanna." Bruce answered. Hanna let her eyes glance at him, a sort of longing in her eyes, but yet the recognition that his eyes were focused on Rachel sat in and she looked down._

_"Really? I thought Patricia Jones would be top of the list," Rachel mused, popping a grape in her mouth. Bruce shrugged._

_"She's nice to look at, but no much going on in her head. It's always 'Oh Em Gee, I like… totally just bought this new lipstick and it like… turns my lips pink,' Then she just goes on and on about her little rat dog." Bruce complained. Both girls chuckled, causing him to let out a few laughs as well._

_"You've never had any trouble with her lack of brains before." Hanna pointed out._

_"Yeah, but that's just to sleep with girls. If I was going to marry one of them, I'd want her to have brains." He answered. Rachel rolled her eyes but laid back._

_"How about you, Rachel?" Hanna asked. Bruce's eyes looked at her a little hopeful. Rachel thought about all the boys in the school and then smiled._

_"That boy, Harvey Dent." She answered. Bruce frowned._

_"He doesn't go to our school anymore." He reminded her. Rachel shrugged._

_"Okay, well I guess it would have to be Bruce then. All the other guys in our school are idiots." Hanna nodded. Rachel looked toward her._

_"What about you? Hanna?" Hanna shrugged._

_"I'm pretty sure I'd rather die. Because all the guys in our school are idiots." Hanna stated, grabbing a handful of popcorn._

_"Jeez, at least you have Bruce." Rachel reminded her. Bruce rolled her eyes, which caused Hanna to frown._

_"Please, if I wanted a caveman for a husband I'd marry Nathan Sanders, even if he is smoking hot." Rachel laughed and Bruce frowned._

_"Thanks Hanna, that makes me feel so much better." She shrugged._

_"Love hurts."_

_

* * *

_

"I lost everything when Rachel died. I have nothing."

His words echoed through her head, like an annoying tune that got stuck there and she couldn't get out. Even as she sat with her son watching T.V. she could only focus on him and what he said. After a minute she sighed and ran a hand through her hair. It had been two weeks, she shouldn't be dwelling on him and what he said.

"Mom, you okay?" Danny asked. Hanna jumped a bit but nodded.

"Yeah, simply tired." She answered. Danny shrugged and stood up, grabbing the left over can of soda and walking into the kitchen. Hanna sunk into the couch and looked at her left hand where her wedding ring still lay. She had just changed her name back, but she still felt as if she was betraying her dead husband. He was dead, he wasn't her husband anymore. Yet if that was true, then why did she feel so horrible?

"Hey mom, I'm going to bed." Danny told her. Hanna nodded and pulled him into a hug, kissing his forehead as he pulled away.

"Alright, sleep well," she said softly. Danny paused as he searched her face.

"I have a question." He stated. Hanna raised an eyebrow but nodded.

"What is your question?" Danny shifted his weight before he asked.

"Did you change your name because you don't love Dad anymore?" Hanna sighed and shook her head.

"No, honey. I will always love your father." She told him.

"But, Jessica's mom and dad split up and she changed her name, and now she is marrying some other guy." He told her. Hanna sat her son down next to her and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Danny, there is a big difference between me and Jessica's mom. For one, she was unhappy with Jessica's daddy and they knew they would be better parents if they weren't together. If your dad was alive I wouldn't change my name. I will always love your father, but I don't want to be alone anymore. I know that is difficult for you to understand right now, but when you're older, you'll get it." Danny made a face but nodded.

"Fine. I'm going to bed." He told her. She smiled and kissed his forehead.

"Night baby." She told him. Danny scrunched his nose but didn't complain.

"Night mom." He replied, walking down the hall. Hanna leaned back into the couch and changed the channel o the news. A picture of Bruce came onto screen, with a story talking about the boy billionaire suddenly becoming anti-social and how they feel a woman might be involved.

"You have no idea." Hanna snapped at the television.

_

* * *

_

Hanna took a sip of her drink as she gazed across the living room. Next to her Rachel and Bruce were busy talking to someone in their class, but she didn't bother joining into the conversation. Her glass was spiked so she was in quite a good mood, and she wasn't going to let the two wannabe lovebirds bother her.

_"Hanna, I didn't know you were going to be here." Hanna glanced over, smiling at a boy she recognized from marching band. He played, trumpet, no, trombone… maybe._

_"Hey… Jon, right?" he nodded and grabbed a drink._

_"Yeah, I didn't think you would be here. You never really go to Corey's parties." She shrugged._

_"Yeah well, my friends wanted to know what all the hype was about." He moved so he was closer to her. Normally she would comment about him being in her personal bubble, but he was cute, and she was tired of being the only single one._

_"Is it living up to it's hype?" she shrugged._

_"I suppose, I haven't really done anything worth while yet." He smiled._

_"Want to dance?" he asked. After a moment she put her drink down and took hold of his hand._

_"Let's go." She told him. He complied, of course, and she let herself fall to his not so seductive ways. So a few dances later, and many more cups of spike punch, she was practically putty in his hands._

_"Here, sit down." He told her, leading her to a couch in a corner. She sat down and took one last sip of her drink, then put it aside and turned toward Jon._

_"You know… I think I'm a little… drunk." She said, giggling afterwards. Jon nodded and shook his head._

_'Yeah, that you are." He remarked. She moved closer and grabbed onto his shirt. He moved a bit closer to her and smirked._

_"I'm going to make out with you now." She stated. He laughed and placed a hand on her waist._

_"I have no problem with that." He said. She leaned forward and let her lips crash onto his. He responded with his arms pulling her onto his lap. She let her hands find their way into his hair while he let his hands begin to travel up her shirt. It was then that she felt a small bulge rubbing against her thigh. She then pulled away to say something, but he attached his lips to her neck and began to leave a small mark._

_"Wait, wait… I don't want to uh… do it." She told him. He quickly finished with her neck and pulled away._

_"We'll see." He told her._

_"Well…" Before she could say anything else, he attached his lips to hers once more._

_'Okay, we'll do this then.' she thought. He must have seemed to have read her mind because he continued to feel his way up her shirt. In the back of her mind, she knew people were watching and this was wrong. But the front of her mind was to busy liking the feeling of his lips on hers. That is until she was pulled off them._

_"Whoa." She muttered, momentarily dazed._

_"What the hell Wayne?" she heard Jon say. She looked over and saw a very angry looking Bruce._

_"Back of Keller. She's off limits!" Bruce snapped._

_"Say's who?" John hissed. Hanna turned toward Bruce._

_"Yeah, say's who?" she asked. Bruce rolled his eyes._

_"Come on Hanna, you're drunk." She scrunched her nosed._

_"So? I can be drunk!" Rachel appeared next to them._

_"Bruce, Hanna-"_

_"You're going home!" Bruce told her._

_"No, I'm saying here with Jon!" she snapped. By now everyone was watching the four of them._

_"You heard her Wayne," Jon said, taking Hanna's hand. "Stop worrying about her and find a girl of your own. And let me and Hanna have a good time." He said, wrapping an arm around her waist. Bruce paused then grabbed Hanna's arm, pulling her away from Jon, and used his other arm to swing his fist at him. Everyone in the room gasped when they heard Bruce's fist connect with Jon's nose._

_"Fuck!" Jon shouted, holding onto his nose._

_"Bruce! What the hell!" Hanna shouted. Bruce grabbed her arm and motioned for Rachel to follow them._

_"We're leaving." He snapped, walking through the crowd and out the door. When they got to the bottom of the porch Hanna pulled her arm away._

_"What is your problem?" she shouted. Rachel stepped forward and put a hand on her shoulder._

_"Hanna, come on-"_

_"No! Who the hell does he think he is? You have no right to pry into my personal life!" Bruce glared at her._

_"I'm only your best friend. I think that gives me enough of a right." He shouted._

_"Bull shit, if I want to fuck someone, then I have every damn right to! You don't see me trying to take you away from every girl you fuck!" she snapped._

_"That's different!"_

_"How the hell is that different?" she asked._

_"Because I'm not young and naïve! Because it just is, that's why!" there was a silence between them before Rachel spoke._

_"I'm going to get our jackets, seeing as we forgot them." She said, walking past them. Hanna waited till Rachel was in the house before she spoke._

_"Bruce, you're not my father, you can't tell me what to do. I can take care of myself." She told him. He raised an eyebrow._

_"Obviously not if you're just going to get yourself raped by some random guy." He pointed out. She glared at him._

_"He was not random! I knew him from ban…" she trailed off and ran off to where a few bushes were. Bruce followed her and almost turned back when he saw her empty the contents of her stomach. Instead he pulled back her hair and rubbed her back, like he had seen her do to Rachel and visa versa. After a minute she finished and stood up, wiping her mouth and looking up at him._

_"Thanks." She muttered. He offered a small smile and put a hand on her shoulder._

_"Come on, Rachel will be out in a minute then we'll go to my house." She nodded and let him lead her toward his car._

_"Okay." She replied. After a minute she took a deep breath and looked up at him. "Bruce…"_

_"What?" she gave a sheepish smile._

_"Thanks for looking out for me." Bruce nodded and wrapped an arm around her shoulders._

_"Of course."_

* * *

Her fingers moved across the piano as her eyes scanned the page, the sounds coming from other places in the high school were being blocked from her mind at the moment. It took her seven years, but she finally became halfway decent at piano. Now, it seemed to be the only thing to keep her mind off anything that was troubling her. Sadly, no matter how many times she buried herself in her job or the piano, she couldn't get herself to feel any better. The weight of her best friends death still rested upon her.

She had Sasha there to help her out, but as much as she loved Sasha, she wasn't the person she wanted to mourn with. The only person she felt that she could mourn Rachel's death with, was one of the last people she wanted to see. So, instead of going to him and talking, she buried herself in her job, took care of her son, and played piano. Though she doubted it would last long.

"Hanna!" a voice called, causing her to hit the wrong key. She pressed her lips together and looked up to see the head of music on the school board.

"Mr. Collins," she said standing up. He walked over.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to mess up your playing." He apologized. She shook her head.

"It's alright, I was sort of just trying to get myself lost in the piano." She told him.

"Well, it was quite good." She chuckled lightly, but he could tell it was forced.

"You should see me when my right arm if fully working." He nodded and took a quick glance at the bandaged wrapped around her arm. He glanced around the room and took a deep breath.

"It's been a while since I've taught in this room." Hanna offered a small smile and looked around with him.

"You miss it?" she asked. He nodded.

"Terribly, I taught a lot of kids in this classroom, I remember teaching you when you first started." He said, smiling down at her. Hanna turned a slight pink and nodded.

"Yeah, well… neither of us thought I would be the one teaching the classes." He nodded and sat down in one of the rows.

"No, I sure didn't. I always thought you would've ended up a doctor or something." He admitted. Hanna sat down next to him.

"I was thinking about being a lawyer," she admitted. He raised an eyebrow.

"Why didn't you?" he asked.

"I didn't get accepted into Yale, and got accepted to West Chester instead. Plus there was always something about music that seemed more appealing than a court room." Mr. Collins nodded and a silence came upon them for a moment before he stood up.

"I thought I'd let you know, this is going to be my last year on the board, in the schools in general." Hanna frowned.

"You're retiring?" she asked. He nodded.

"I wanted to know if you would consider being the head of the music department." Hanna let her jaw drop as she let his words sink in.

"You want me to be the head of the board?" he nodded. She ran a hand through her hair and pressed her lips together. Another minute and he spoke.

"You don't have to give me an answer now, but just know that the option is open." She nodded and forced a small smile.

"Thank you, Mr. Collins. I'll think about it." He nodded.

"Of course, have a good day, Hanna."

"Same to you, Mr. Collins." He soon left, leaving her alone to think about it. Being head of the music department would mean much more work, not that she would mind. It would mean she would have more time to bury herself in her music, but less time with her son. On the same level, now a days, Danny was hardly home. Either way, she was loosing something.

The door opened and Hanna looked up, only to look back down when she saw who it was. Why was he here? He was the last person she wanted to talk to right about now. An awkward silence fell upon the two as then as she waited for him to either speak, or leave.

"Hanna…" he said trailing off. She looked up and her blue eyes met his tired, almost dead looking, brown. She stood up but didn't move toward him.

"What do you want?" she asked. He sighed and ran a hand through he slicked back hair.

"Hanna, I just…" Hanna crossed her arms in front of her chest.

"Just what Bruce? I don't have time for another argument." She snapped.

"I came to apologize, Jesus Hanna." He muttered. She frowned and looked down, feeling a tiny bit guilty now.

"Sorry." She muttered. He sighed and a silence fell over them while each other began to collect their thoughts. He finally spoke.

"I was angry, and I shouldn't have taken it out on you. For that I am sorry." He waited for her reply, watching as she seemed to be struggling with something. She finally spoke.

"Alright." He resisted the urge to roll his eyes and snap at her, instead he took a few steps toward her, causing her to look up.

"I um… I think I'm going to go away again." She raised an eyebrow.

"You're just going to disappear again." He gave a half hearted crooked smile.

"Not really, just hiding away from the public eye. I'll still be in the city." He told her. She nodded.

"Why are you telling me?" she asked. He sighed and looked down before looking back up at her.

"Last time I left without saying goodbye, and you thought I was dead. I'm just letting you know that I'm not really leaving you, but I'm still alive." She nodded.

"I guess I'll see you in another ten years then." She said, joking lightly. Bruce didn't let out a chuckle, but he did give a small genuine crooked smile this time. Before she could protest he pulled her into a hug and kissed her forehead, causing her to freeze up.

"I'm so sorry Hanna. I hope one day you will forgive me." He said softly. He then pulled away and left the room, pausing at the door and offering a wave. She returned it and sat back down in her chair. Maybe she would be able to forgive him sooner than he thought.


	11. Chapter 11

_MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!! I hope everyone is enjoying the holidays! Best part about them? No school!! Oh and family and friends too, but no school is just devine. Now I can hang out with my Cousin who is comming from a long distance thanks to no school!!!_

_This is my Holiday present to my readers. I'm sorry it took me so long to update, I kind of hit a bit of a wall and couldn't bring myself to write. Hopefully that will change, we shall see._

_Thank you to all those who added this to their favorite and Alert's list, I appreciate it._

_Thanks to those who have Reviewed, I love reading Reviews... even if they are just, Good job!!!_

_A special thanks to my B.F.F.F. Jeck for helping me brainstorm. You have no idea how much it helped._

_Also, I'd like to thank my iTouch who has provided music constantly for me when I was stuck. And thanks to my Laptop (Who is exactly one years old!) for not crashing on me, I LOVE YOU BABY!!!_

_(I've had a lot of sugar)_

_Enjoy!!!_

**_Disclaimer: I own nothing that is related to Batman of the Dark Knight. They belong to other people. I make no money from this. I do own Hanna, Danny, and other characters that are not familiar with the movies. I also own any plot that is not in the movies. Kinda, but Like I said, I make no money from it._**

_

* * *

_

Hanna's gaze was fixed outside, watching as a few snowflakes gently settled themselves on the windowsill. From her window, everything was peaceful, but she knew better. Outside there were people who were in trouble, people who were getting mugged, people who were about to loose their lives because of the scum of the city.

_The sound of her niece crying brought her back to reality as she walked to the back of the apartment where Kelly's room was located. On the couch sat her friends, who gave up their Christmas eve parties to hang with her instead. If only they didn't fall asleep cuddled on the couch. Ignoring the small pang in her heart she walked up to the crib and smiled down at Kelly._

_"What's the matter? You've already been fed and changed. Aren't you tired?" she asked, picking her up and feeling her head. "No fever, are you just cranky?"_

_Kelly responded by making a few baby noises, causing her to chuckle and sit in the rocking chair. Hanna rocked her gently and watched as her blue eyes looked straight into her own. She looked just like Olivia, if it weren't for the eyes._

_"Hey, you alright?" a voice asked. Hanna glanced over and smiled at Bruce entered the room._

_"Yeah, Kelly just a bit cranky." She answered. Bruce nodded and grabbed a regular chair, sitting across from Hanna. Hanna watched as he moved closer to look down at Kelly, smiling when she began to giggle._

_"See, the Wayne charm even works on babies." He joked._

_"She probably has gas." He chuckled and continued to look down at the baby._

_"Ladies don't have gas… right Kelly." Bruce said, tickling her stomach. Kelly laughed and smiled at him._

_"Here, I think you should hold her." Hanna said, moving forward. Bruce went to move back, but Hanna quickly placed the child in his arms. He seemed awkward for a moment before he finally got her situated and smiled down at her._

_"She's pretty cute." Hanna chuckled and watched him for a moment. He really wasn't all that horrible with kids, he just thought he was. Bruce lightly bounced her in his arms._

_"You'd be a great dad Bruce." Bruce scoffed but continued to look down at her niece._

_"I doubt it, I don't know the first thing about babies," he mumbled. Hanna shrugged and continued to watch him. One day, when he was older hopefully, he'd make a great dad. She doubted that he would marry some high fashion model, because he had little patients for dumb blondes. She did think that perhaps one day he would settle down with a woman from the city, most likely Rachel. He and Rachel would make gorgeous children, so it seemed natural._

_Wait… Rachel and Bruce? No one said they were going to have children. Of course, Bruce was head over heels in love with Rachel, but Rachel never said anything about liking him at all. Though, Hanna knew better than anyone else that Rachel liked Bruce. This was a fact that she was slightly upset by, yet couldn't bring herself to say a word about it. If Rachel said she wanted to marry Bruce, Hanna would stand by and wish her friends the best of luck. Hopefully she would be able to hide her disappointment when the time came._

_"You ever think about having kids?" he asked. She jumped in surprise, not expecting him to say anything._

_"Uh… I guess, maybe when I'm much older," She answered. Bruce began to rock lightly, causing Kelly to become drowsy._

_"How many kids do you want?" he asked. She thought about it for a minute, watching as Kelly began to dose off._

_"Two… maybe three. I guess it depends on who my husband is," she said. Bruce nodded and thought it over himself._

_"I guess, I'd want one… maybe two. Depends," he muttered._

_"What would you name your kids?" Hanna asked, though she already knew the answer._

_"After my parents. I might make Martha a middle name, it's a bit too old fashioned for names now-a-days." Hanna nodded and looked up at Bruce, seeing that he was waiting for her to answer the same question._

_"I'd want to name my son Daniel, after my dad." She answered. Bruce frowned, knowing that the fact her father was not in the best of health, but he was a strong man, he hoped he'd make it through._

_"What about if you had a girl?" he asked. She looked back down at Kelly, who was almost completely asleep now._

_"Allison, after my grandmother," she replied. Bruce looked down at Kelly and smiled lightly when he saw she was fast asleep._

_"Allison Grey, sounds cute."_

_'Allison Wayne sounds cuter,' She thought whimsically. Bruce moved forward and placed Kelly in her arms._

_"I better see how Rachel is doing," he told her. Hanna nodded and placed Kelly in her crib._

_"Yeah, go check on your girlfriend," she jested. She heard Bruce sigh as he left the room._

_"I wish," he whispered. Hanna turned around as he left the room and frowned._

_"I don't…"_

_--------_

"Danny, time for dinner!" Danny paused his video game and ran into the kitchen, grabbing a plate from the counter and sitting down.

"What is this stuff?" he asked. Hanna set down a glass of milk for him and sat down with her own plate.

"It's called Veal Parmesan, it's good." Danny looked at her in disbelief and poked it with his fork and then frowned.

"I don't want to eat it, it looks disgusting." Hanna gave a heavy sigh and began eating.

"Danny, just eat your dinner." He pushed his plate away.

"Can't we just order a pizza or something?" he asked. Hanna dropped her fork and shot him a look.

"Daniel, you either eat your dinner, or you don't eat at all tonight. Is that understood?" he scoffed but began eating his dinner. Hanna felt little bad about being so harsh with him, but she was under so much stress lately that she had little time for her sons rebellious attitude. Thanksgiving had just ended, and they were closing in on Christmas, one of her least favorite holidays as of late. She could barely afford her small apartment, let alone get gifts for her son.

"Mom, are you alright?" Danny asked. Hanna looked at her son, who was looking up at her in all seriousness. It was a bit hard to believe that in March he would be ten years old, he seemed so much older.

"Yes, I'm fine Honey…" she answered. They ate the rest of their dinner in almost silence, with a few comments here or there.

"You have dishes tonight Danny, Aunt Sasha will be here in a minute," Hanna said, rinsing her dishes and putting them in the sink.

"Where are you going?" Danny asked.

"Out, I'll be home later." Danny walked up to her, causing her to pause her cleaning to look at him.

"But it's dark… what if the batman tries to get you?" Hanna resisted the urge to roll her eyes at her son, but smiled instead.

"Don't worry, I'll be fine," she said, kissing his forehead. Before he could say anything else, the doorbell rang and Hanna grabbed her coat.

"I'll be back later, be a good boy for your Aunt Sasha," she told him, giving him a hug and walking to the door.

"Tell me again why I'm babysitting on a Thursday night?" Sasha asked.

"You don't have to, but you did say yes already." Sasha rolled her eyes and set her laptop bag down.

"No worries, I just have a ton of work to do. Can you believe they assigned me to the celebrity section this month?" Hanna shook her head.

"Your talents are being wasted on the trust fund brigade." Sasha nodded.

"I've got a ton of dirt on almost all the socialites of Gotham. Though, I guess you could probably confirm all of it," Sasha muttered, taking her coat off.

"I'd rather not… wait, you said almost. Why not all, it's not like the socialites are very private around here." Sasha looked thoughtful for a minute before a look of recognition came to her face.

"Right, I couldn't get anything on Bruce… the most I got is that he hasn't been at Wayne tower for a long time." Hanna's eyebrows furrowed as she soaked in the information.

"Really? Huh, I wonder why…" she muttered. She knew damn well why, she just didn't want herself to admit it. Bruce was falling farther and farther into a pit of despair, and she couldn't even help him.

"Who cares, what I really want to write about is that damn new small time mob coming up. They're calling themselves the Olympians, supposedly each of the bosses is nicknamed after one of the gods. So cliché, right?" Hanna rolled her eyes, only her friend would think that a gang would be corny or gay.

"Whatever, look… I need to split, but I'll be back later." She said, walking out the door. As soon as she walked onto the street, she sighed at the fact that she no longer had a car. Though, it was either her car or the heat for her apartment, ultimately, the heat won. So she was stuck walking to her office in order to wrap what little presents she had been able to buy for her son.

As she walked down the cold street, she couldn't help but let her thoughts drift back to Bruce, as they often did these days. When he said he was going to disappear she half expected him to just pick up and leave town, but was surprised to find that he didn't. She then expected him to bury himself in his work, which would have been one of the better choices. Instead it looked as if he was burying himself in alcohol, which wouldn't have been a better choice.

"Hey there sweet cheeks." A voice cut through. Hanna jumped and looked over, realizing that she had let her mind wander, and thus wandered into the wrong part of town. She looked toward a small group of men, who obviously had been drinking and didn't seem like the best type of people to be around at the moment.

When she realized they were walking toward her, she turned around to walk away only to be stopped by a larger man behind her. In order to get away from him, she took a step back, only to back into one of the other men.

"Look at what blew into our neighborhood boys," he snapped, grabbing a hold of her shoulders.

"Hey there Kitten, wanna play?" another asked. Hanna tried to kick one of them back, but eight against one was hardly fair, for her anyway. The mans laughed echoed through the alley as he parted her jacket, his eyes dropping to her jeans immediately.

"Leave me alone," Hanna snapped, trying to slap away one of the men. This only caused the group to laugh at her as he let his hands rest on her hips.

"Come on Kitty, let's play awhile." Hanna felt herself go cold as he reached for her zipper.

"Please, don't do this," she cried. The men simply laughed at her, causing her to cringe. Tears fell from her eyes as she felt his cold dingy hands on her skin, and she prepared for the worst.

"Shit! It's him!" someone screamed, and she was let go instantly. Her side was met with the hard cement and she could practically feel the pebbles making a new home in her elbow. The sound of men screaming and gun shots being fired off made it's way to her ears, causing her to crawl against the wall. The more she heard, the more she tried to cram herself against the wall, and the more tears fell down her face. She didn't understand why this was happening to her, she just wanted to be able to go to work without getting cornered. She didn't have the will to continue on like this.

"Hanna," a gruff voice said. She jumped when she felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up to see his dark silhouette, his strange helmet seeming more terrifying then it actually was. She shrunk away from him immediately.

"Don't! Leave me alone!" she cried into her hands. She pulled her knees to her chest and began to sob uncontrollably. She didn't want anymore, she just wanted to give up. It would be so much easier to just stay right here, for the rest of her life.

"Hanna, get up!" he snapped, pulling her to her feet. He couldn't stand to see her like this, so broken. Bruce hadn't seen her this hopeless since…

"No! Don't touch me!" she cried. He gave a sigh and ignored the pain shooting in his side, he'd deal with that later. "I can't do this, I can't…" she muttered.

"Yes you can, you always do," he said, whispering the last part. For a second his dark knight façade slip. The voice cut through her mind lie a knife, but in her hysterical fit, she couldn't place it.

"It's hard…" she whispered.

"It always is." She looked up and her deep blue eyes met the dark knights warm brown. A warmth immediately filled her as she did, which followed with her stomach doing a few flips. She looked down, not liking the feeling this vigilante was giving her.

"You're innocent… aren't you?" she asked softly. He said nothing. One, because he didn't want to let out his secret. Two, because the pain in his side was becoming increasingly worse.

"Are you-" The next thing she knew, his body had fallen against hers and pinned her against the alley wall. If it was even more possible, she felt her stomach almost jumping, and her heart leap up in her throat. His head dropped to her shoulder, and she felt as if her veins were on fire. She heard him grunt and his hand went to his side immediately.

"Sorry," he gasped. She looked down and placed her hand on top of his and instantly felt the hot liquid.

"You're bleeding," she stated. He went to move away, but almost stumbled backwards. Not enough sleep and too much alcohol was preventing him from being able to fight as well as he would have liked.

"You need help," she told him.

"I'm fine," he snapped, turning to walk away. He didn't get very far before he fell to the ground, grabbing his side. This was his punishment for hanging onto Rachel like he was. He was probably going to die if he didn't get the bullet out soon, maybe that's what he wanted.

"You need help, I'll call an ambulance." He grabbed a hold of her arm, a little tighter than he intended, and shook his head.

"Can't…" he muttered. She sighed and helped him up, almost buckling under his weight.

"I'll take you to my office, we'll think of something there." He wanted to protest, but they were already moving and he had no where to go. They walked in silence as she hobbled with him to the school, which was only a few more blocks, all the while she was bombarded with thoughts.

What was she doing? Was she willingly helping a vigilante? She knew it was a crazy thought, but she couldn't just let him die. Not after saving her life at least. She wasn't even sure what she was going to do once he was at her office. She had no knowledge of first aid, she could put a band-aid on his side if he needed, but nothing more. When they finally got to her office, she set him down on her chair and took off her coat, so she could stop any blood from getting on the floor.

"I, uh… I don't know what I can do, I have a first aid kit, but that's it." The Batman saw the first aid and grabbed it, searching through it till he found some tweezers.

"I'll do it, all I need for you to do is go get some water. By the time you come back I should have the bullet out so you wont have to see so much blood." Her eyebrows furrowed.

"How did you know I don't like blood?" she asked. He said nothing as he ripped open a small side in his uniform, showing the hole. Hanna immediately turned away and ran to the bathroom, taking a large towel with her. The last thing she wanted to do was to throw up in front of the dark Knight himself. That would have been awkward to sit through. She waited in the bathroom for ten minutes before she made her way back to her office. When she got there, she saw he was holding the coat to his side, and there was a bloody bullet on her desk. She ignored it and kneeled down next to him.

"Here, let me help you," she said, moving his hand away. He paused for a brief moment, but complied and moved the jacket away. She flinched but placed the towel over it in order to clean it up. They sat in silence as she watched her white towel begin to turn red, she could only imagine how much pain he was in. After a moment she pulled the towel away and got out some gauze.

"People must get shot around her often if you have this on the ready," he muttered. She wasn't sure if he was mocking her horrible first aid work, or he was just joking with her. A look to his warm brown eyes said that it was meant as a jest and she shouldn't take it to heart.

"Well, it's not uncommon around these parts," she replied, a bit of truth coating her voice. The Batman became silent as he watch her apply some hydrogen peroxide. He gave a sharp hiss at feeling the disinfectant began to clear up any bacteria on the wound, the small pain made him grab a hold of the chair. Hanna looked up and hide a small smile.

"What?" Batman asked. She shook her head.

"Nothing. I just find it funny that you can go against a group of criminals, but cringe at the sting of hydrogen peroxide." Batman rolled his eyes and watched as she used her fingers to wipe away the access liquid from the wound. The simple touch was enough to send fire through his veins in a way he couldn't explain. He contributed it to the fact that he was injured.

"Hmm…" he muttered. She moved so she could place the bandage better and looked up at him through her eyelashes. He seemed as if he were tired, maybe even a little drunk, but he was still menacing enough to scare people. Her hands moved quickly as she taped the bandage on the wound, making sure it was secure enough for him to get home.

"There, I think that's everything," she muttered. He nodded and watched as she cleaned everything up, save for the bit of blood on her hands. She began cleaning up and throwing her coat and towel in the trash. It was then he noticed a very small pile of toys in the corner.

"They for your son?" he asked. She looked at the pile, then nodded.

"It's all I could afford this year," she confessed, taking the bullet on her desk and throwing it out. He frowned as her words sunk in. Bruce had no clue that she was having financial problems, though, he hardly knew anything that was going on with her now-a-days.

"Financial problems?" he asked. She turned around and crossed her arms.

"Not that it's any of your business, but yes, things have been a bit tough this year," she muttered. If it was even more possible, he frowned even more. She ignored him and tied up her trash. She didn't know why she was telling him her personal story anyway. What was she, crazy? Quite possibly.

"Hanna-"

"You should go, before someone catches you." He paused as he watched her clean up the mess. He stood up carefully, noticing the pain in his side was slightly better. He took a step forward toward her, watching as she froze in almost an instant.

"Thank you," he muttered. She nodded her head slightly and looked down.

"Sure…" she muttered. He looked at her for a moment longer before walking out of her office, leaving her alone once again.

----------

_"Bruce, I'm going to tell you this once… shut the hell up!" Hanna snapped. Bruce gave a frustrated sigh as he walked with her to their next class._

_"Hanna, come on, no need to be so nasty," he shot back. Hanna walked into the room and threw her bag next to her desk and pulled out her drum sticks._

_"I'm not being nasty, you have no right to pry into my personal life like that. You've scared off almost every boy I've had plans with." Bruce rolled his eyes._

_"Now I know you're exaggerating, I don't care who you date." She scoffed as she began to tap out a beat on her desk. She took a glance at the snow accumulating on the ground and smiled. Two days before Christmas and it was snowing, it would definitely be a white Christmas._

_"Miss Grey, stop that horrible noise and pay attention," a voice snapped. Hanna jumped and hid her drum sticks away from her algebra teacher._

_"Sorry," she muttered. Her teacher glared and began to go over a test they had taken the day before. Bruce rolled his eyes, thinking how stupid it was that they were still doing math the day before Christmas break. The rest of class was pretty slow, until someone knocked on the door, causing the class to jump a bit._

_"Yes?" the teacher snapped, apparently very annoyed someone interrupted her class. The principle walked in, followed by two police officers._

_"Sorry to interrupt your class, is Hanna Grey here?" the principle asked. The whole class turned to look at her, which made her want to sink further in her chair._

_"Miss Grey, please gather your things and go with the principle." Hanna hesitantly stood up and swung her backpack over her shoulder. Bruce watched as she followed the officers and principles to the door, where they stopped and talked with the door closed. He watched as her face went confused, to shocked, and in a matter of seconds they were practically running down the hallway._

_Bruce became quite troubled by the occurrence, but sat through the class, not knowing what else to do. When the bell finally rang, he searched the halls looking for her familiar dark hair, but couldn't find her._

_"Bruce!" he heard a voice call. He turned around as he saw Rachel run toward him._

_"Rachel, do you know what happened to Hanna?" he asked. She nodded and frowned._

_"Bruce… her dad was in a really bad accident. They aren't sure he'll make the night."_

--------------

Hanna gave a small smile as she looked out the window of her old living room. Her mothers house wasn't big, but was big enough to support a small family of four. Danny was currently sleeping in Matt's old room, and she decided to take refuge in her old room. It was so quiet it was almost unnerving.

"Hanna, you alright?" Hanna turned around and smiled as her mother walked in. she was surprised the woman had been so sturdy through all these years. She was so strong, while Hanna was barely able to stay above water.

"Just thinking…" she muttered. Her mother nodded and sat down next to her, watching the snow drift down to the ground.

"I went to see your father today." Hanna flinched as she heard her mother speak about him.

"Really…" she whispered. Her mother nodded.

"Yes, I told him how you were doing." Hanna pressed her lips together as she listen to her mother talk about him, as if he were still alive.

"I suppose there isn't much to tell," Hanna stated. Her mother frowned at her daughters dour demeanor but continued.

"Why don't you visit him? I'm sure he would like to see you."

"Because he's not alive mom… he's… dead," she whispered. Her mother frowned but didn't push the subject. A silence came upon them as they looked out the window. It was a beautiful Christmas day, even with the extreme lack of presents they still made the best of it.

"Did you call Bruce?" Her mother asked. Hanna shook her head and crossed her arms across her chest.

"I didn't think he would answer if I called him," she muttered. Her mother frowned a little, disappointed to see her daughter so sad.

"You never know, maybe he's had a change of heart." Hanna shook her head.

"No, I don't think he will. Maybe if I was Rachel he would talk to me, but that's not the case," she said. Her mother placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"I'm sorry, Hanna… things will change, they always do." Hanna stood up and walked away from her mother.

"I'm so tired of change, the last change I had landed me with my best friend eight feet under," she said sadly. Her mother wasn't sure what to say, she hadn't seen her daughter so distraught since her father died and her brother ended up in a insane asylum.

"Oh, Hanna." Hanna simply let out a sigh of annoyance and ran a hand through her hair.

"I think I'm gonna go to bed," she said. He mother nodded and stood up, walking over to her and hugging her tight.

"Merry Christmas Hanna," she whispered. Hanna forced a smile on her face and pulled away.

"Thanks mom, Merry Christmas."

* * *

_Life never looked quite as dark as it did. The snow continued on the dark Christmas, but in Hanna's mind, it should have been rain. She sat in a corner, her knees pulled close to her chest and her chin resting on her knees. She officially hated Christmas, now and forever._

_A knock on her bedroom door made her head shot up and glance at the person entering the room. She was a bit surprised that it was not her mother, and found herself hating her appearance. She was wearing her pajamas, and her hair was a complete mess. If she would've known he was coming over she would've changed._

_"Hanna," he voice called. She said nothing and continued to look down at the ground. He sighed and walked over sitting next to her on the floor. They continued to sit in silence as they both became engrossed in their own minds. What was he doing here? Why wasn't' Rachel with him?_

_"It's snowing," he stated. She glanced up at the window and watched as a few flakes stuck to the window. She continued to watch the snow as he watched her. He knew just as much as her what it was like to loose a parent suddenly. Of course Rachel's father had been quite sick, and they thought he was going to die as well, but he recovered quite well. With him and Hanna, it wasn't expected, they had no warning._

_"You want to talk about it?" he asked. She looked back down and shook her head. She didn't want to talk about her dad and have him tell her it was going to be alright, and that she would get over it._

_"It sucks," he muttered. She looked over at him and furrowed he eyebrows._

_"You wake up, and it starts like every other day, and then right in the middle of it… things like this happens, and you feel worse then shit. You cry it out, then try and sleep, only to be plagued by nightmares day and night. It sucks," he said. Hanna nodded and watched as his eyes turned a little glossy. Almost nine years later, Bruce was still trying to overcome his parents death. Would she be any different?_

_"You have your mom though, and brother. Not to mention friends like Rachel and I. I mean, I had you two growing up, but you have your mom with you Hanna." She nodded and leaned against the wall._

_"He just left us, Bruce. I didn't even say goodbye," she whispered, her voice a little hoarse. He nodded and wrapped an arm around her shoulders._

_"I know the feeling."_

_----------_

"Ms. Grey, how was your break?" Hanna glanced up from her desk and offered a smile at the principle who walked in.

"Fine, Mrs. Adams, and yours?" she asked, standing up.

"Quite good, very busy." Hanna nodded and waited for her to continue.

"Mrs. Adams, is there something specific you would like to talk to me about?" Mrs. Adams nodded and moved around the room, surveying the condition it was in.

"I have just received a call from a representative at Wayne Enterprises. Apparently, they wish to make a hefty donation to help the schools out and help get the mob out of the way." Hanna's eyes widened as her words sank in.

"What?" Mrs. Adams nodded and smiled widely at her.

"Yes, it's quite generous of them, isn't it?" she asked. Hanna nodded.

"Oh yes, very much so," she answered.

"They have also decided to throw a charity in order for other people to make a donation for certain departments of their choice. Being head of the music department, you are indeed invited." Hanna nodded.

"Thank you, Mrs. Adams." Mrs. Adams nodded and looked at her desk, spotting the picture of her, Bruce, and Rachel.

"Hanna, may I ask a personal question?" Hanna furrowed her eyebrows but nodded.

"Sure."

"Did you… did you set this up with Mr. Wayne?" She asked. Hanna looked a little shocked but shook her head.

"No, I didn't. Why would you think that?" she asked.

"Well, we all know that you are close friends with Mr. Wayne, I just thought you may have suggested it to him."

"No, he's doing this on his own accord, I have nothing to do with it," Mrs. Adams nodded.

"The charity event is black tie, and is next week. I trust you will be able to find something suitable." Hanna nodded.

"Yes, Ma'am." Mrs. Adams nodded and began to leave the room.

"Have a good day, Miss Grey."

"You too, Mrs. Adams…"

----------

_"What about this dress?" Rachel asked. Hanna raised an eyebrow at her friend._

_"It looks just the other seven dresses you've tried on," she confessed. Rachel gave a frustrated huff and crossed her arms._

_"Hanna, this is the valentines day dance, can you at least act like your excited." Hanna frowned and gripped the couch she was sitting on._

_"I'm not. I don't want to go. The only reason I am is because you bought me a ticket and I didn't want to waste your money." She snapped._

_"You need to get out of the house, you've been hiding in your room for more than a month! Honestly Hanna, you need to stop being so anti-social."_

_"My dad just died, forgive me if I don't feel like going to some stupid fucking dance!" she snapped. Rachel frowned._

_"I understand-"_

_"No! See, that's the problem. You don't understand. You've never lost a parent! You have no idea what it's like to lose the man who has raised you since birth!" Rachel frowned._

_"I almost lost my father too Hanna," she reminded her._

_"Big fucking deal, he got better and he is still alive. My dad is DEAD, Rachel. You think your pathetic little story about your dad being in the hospital is going to make me feel better? It's not!" Hanna hissed. A few customers in the store were now beginning to look their way and give each other odd looks._

_"No need to be nasty Hanna, I was just trying to help." Hanna stood up and threw Rachel's purse on the ground._

_"I don't want your fucking help! You're not helping me at all! The only way you can help is to bring my dad back to life, and I'm pretty sure you can't do that. And if you could, Bruce would be first in line right?" Tears were beginning to sting Rachel's eyes as she watched her friend begin to break down._

_"Jesus Hanna, it's not my fault that he died, I just wanted to make you feel better," Rachel said, tears threatening to spill from her eyes._

_"I don't want you to make me feel better! I can take care of myself for crying out loud!" she snapped. She turned around and began to walk outside the shop._

_"Hanna!" Rachel called._

_"Leave me the hell alone! I don't want to talk to you! I don't know how much clearer I can make it to you! Just fucking leave me alone, Rachel!" She hissed, walking out of the store and rushing her way down the side of the mall. Her knuckles were pure white, and she was sure she looked like a crazy person the way she kept mumbling to herself._

_She was so mad at the fact that Rachel just tried to fix everything, she had no right to butt in and try and fix everything. Who does she think she is?_

_'Your best friend…' a voice in the back of her head called. She stopped walking as the reality of the statement hit her. Deep down she knew she had yelled at her best friend without a real reason too. She was just so frustrated, with her friends, with the world, with everything._

_"Hanna!" a voice called. Hanna turned around just as a few tears fell down her cheeks. Bruce stopped in front of her and looked down, frowning at her tearful face._

_"I didn't mean to hurt her," Hanna cried, a sob making it's way out her lips. Bruce knew exactly who she had hurt, since Rachel had called him to go after her. He placed a hand on her cheek, wiping away the new tears that were falling._

_"I just got so mad! I knew I shouldn't have yelled, but she was getting on my nerves. Now she'll never forgive me, and it's all my fault," she sobbed._

_"It's not, Hanna, it really isn't. Rachel will understand." She shook her head and began to shake as she sobbed._

_"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry," she cried. Bruce quickly pulled her into a hug and let her cry into his jacket, rubbing her back as she continued to shake uncontrollably. He ignored all the people in the mall who were giving them weird looks, he needed o comfort her._

_"I know Hanna… I know. I'm here. You're okay, I'm here," he whispered._


	12. Chapter 12

_Hmm… This is a bit late. By a bit I mean REALLY late. I apologize. Life has been so hectic lately. Between school, friends, my laptop breaking, and writing… it's been… difficult to find time for this story. _

_A lot of my writing time has been spent co-writing with one of my friends. I suggest you check out our story. It's a Star Trek 2009 one, but we've been having fun writing it. It's very different from this one, and a bit more mature. So check it out, that will probably be updated more than this one will be._

_I can't say how sorry I am that I haven't posted, again life is crazy. I'm going to try and work on this story more but it's been hard to find inspiration to write. I hope you guys can stick it out until I can get more chapters out. Once I find a big plot twist I'll get it out soon enough._

_I want to thank everyone who put in Reviews, they really make me happy. The lengthy ones tend to make me want to write more, but all are accepted._

_And thank you to everyone who added this to their alerts and favorite lists. I appreciate it._

_Enjoy!_

_**Disclaimer: I do not own Batman, it belongs to DC comics, and the dark knight stuff belongs to Warner Brothers and Chris Nolan. I do own Hanna, Danny, and any other OC you see that is not familiar with the series. I also own part of the plot. Don't steal!**_

* * *

"You know, Miss Grey, I've always been fond of music, I used to plat oboe you know." Hanna smiled politely at the man in front of her.

"Really? I did not know that. Our current oboe player just made district band, first chair I believe," she informed him.

"Is that so? Well, you must be doing something right in that school then. What instrument did you play my dear?" he asked.

"Oh, I was a percussionist myself."

"I never would've guessed, you strike me more of a French Horn player." Hanna shrugged and took a sip of her champagne.

"No, I didn't even know how to play French Horn until I went into college." He nodded and continued to talk about his days at his alma mater. Eventually he had a few people join him, and there was a small group of people all around her talking about the music program at the high school. She answered their questions as best as she could, but was having a hard time keeping up with all of them. Eventually she excused herself and made her way to the bar and sat down on the bench, making sure she didn't step on her dress.

Her dress was a simple thing she found in her old closet. Her mother helped her resize it so it would fit better, and she had to say it wasn't too bad. It reached the floor and hugged her body in a appealing way. The top was white and had a halter top cut, while the bottom was black and had a red strip right under the bust. The fabric looked like it had glitter on it and sparkled subtly, but it was a nice dress, and it was cheep.

"What can I get you?" The bartender asked. Hanna thought about it as she surveyed the drink menu.

"I think a simple soda would be fine, I'm not really in a drinking mood." He nodded and handed her a coke. She took a sip and glanced at herself in the mirror. If anyone had a doubt she wasn't part of the trust fund brigade, one look at her face would've been a dead giveaway.

Her hair was pulled back into a French bun, but it held no jewels or anything that would give it a sparkle like most of the other women here did. Her face held little to no make-up, except the amount she used to cover the bags under her eyes. It seemed useless, however, so she just gave up and went as is.

She turned toward the group just in time to see the Prince of Gotham walk in himself. If she had to guess, this would probably be the worst she had seen him since his parents died. His hair was still slicked back, but his eyes were practically dead. He seemed to be in no better shape then he was when Rachel first died.

"What do you think of the party?" Hanna glanced over at the newcomer, smiling a little as she saw who it was.

"Mr. Dougherty, do you go to all the latest charities in Gotham?" she asked.

"Call me Patrick, and yes… I quite frequently do," he answered, taking a sip of his drink. Hanna chuckled, but even he could tell it was forced.

"Well, I can't say this one will be as entertaining as the last one we both were at." He laughed and nodded.

"Well, you have to have a boring party every now and then." She smiled and nodded, watching as he sat down next to her.

"How is the divorce coming?" She asked.

"Oh now, what a depressing thing to bring up at a party," he said, his green eyes locking on her dark blue.

"I was simply trying to make conversation." He laughed and took another sip of her drink, eyeing the glass of coke next to her.

"Well, if you really wish to know, it's over with. We went through it pretty swiftly in order to keep it out of the press." Hanna nodded and let her finger trace around the edge of the glass.

"Smart move," she muttered.

"And how are you, Mrs. Sanders?" he asked.

"It's Miss Grey again, and call me Hanna," she told him. He smiled widely and nodded.

"Of course, but you never did answer my question." She glanced over and her eyes met his brown. She wasn't surprised that instead of a warm brown, they were much colder, almost dead. He seemed to be pushing whatever façade he had of the old Bruce to the limit, almost unbelievable.

Bruce would have been lying if he said he expected her to be here. Mrs. Adams said that only the heads of departments would be coming to the event. Now that he saw her, he realized she was a department head.

He had to admit, she looked a bit drained, as if she had planned the party, cooked and served the food, and decorated the place all by herself. Other than that, she looked quite nice. She wasn't overly dressed like a lot of the women here, and he could've sworn she worse something similar to the valentines day dance back in high school. She looked quite lovely.

"Mr. Wayne?" A voice cut in. Bruce blinked but forced a smile on his face.

"Sorry, I let my mind wander, what was that?" he asked. The man followed his gaze to the bar, where Hanna was now turned toward Patrick and was striking up a conversation.

"You looking to get laid?" he asked. Almost immediately, a fire lit in Bruce's eyes as he glared at him.

"No," He said simply. The man nodded.

"Good, because I think you could do a whole lot better. She seems a bit shabby." Bruce crossed his arms.

"She looks wonderful," he whispered. The man gave him a funny look but didn't have time to respond before Bruce walked off in her direction. He walked right up to them, and stood right in front of her.

"Hanna," he said. She jumped a bit and looked up, her face full of shock.

"Bruce," she muttered. "How… how have you been?" she asked. He could tell from her voice that she was a bit uncertain about talking to him. He didn't blame her. They hadn't spoken to each other since that day in her classroom, if you didn't count when he was Batman.

"Fine… you?" he asked. She gave a small shrug.

"Alright I suppose…." She admitted. He nodded but said nothing else.

"So Wayne, nice party. What made you up and decide to just suddenly throw a charity for the schools?" Patrick asked. Bruce turned his attention away from Hanna and shrugged his shoulders.

"Well, with the city the way it is now, I figured the best way to help the schools is to make sure the mob is out." Patrick raised an eyebrow.

"The mob?" he asked.

"Yes, the schools have lost all funding from anywhere else, they've turned toward the mobs for help." Hanna looked down, slightly ashamed of the fact.

"Really? Well, what made you think to help out now?" Patrick asked. Bruce shot a look at Hanna, but she ignored it.

"Talking with a few friends of mine, I realized that we couldn't stand by any longer. Something must be done." Bruce told him. Hanna glanced up at him, but quickly turned back to her drink. Bruce frowned a bit but turned back to Patrick, who was now looking at Hanna.

"So, how about a dance?" Patrick asked. Hanna looked up, a little startled by the question.

"I'm sorry?" she asked. Patrick stood up.

"A dance, they just started dancing and I'm wondering if you would join me." Hanna looked at him before glancing at Bruce, who was looking straight at her. She froze under his gaze, seeing his light brown eyes search through her own cool blue. A minute later she turned back to Patrick and gave a small nod.

"Sure," she replied, standing up and walking with him to the dance floor. Bruce watched as the two of them made it to the dance floor and began to dance. A small fire seemed to rise from the bottom of his stomach as Patrick pulled her close to him, insinuating more than a simple dance. Hanna seemed to ignore it, but the look in her eyes told him that she didn't want to be in the situation. Bruce gave a sigh as he turned to the bar, ordering a drink and leaving the two alone for the moment.

"You do look quite nice, Hanna," Patrick told her. Hanna forced a smile and looked down.

"Thank you, you look quite nice yourself," she told him. He chuckled and continued to lead her in the dance.

"You're not really into this whole flirting thing are you?" he asked. She blushed lightly and shook her head.

"It's not that, I just haven't done that sort of thing in some time. Wait, are you flirting with me?" she asked. He laughed.

"I was attempting to," he said. She forced a smiled and looked down at the ground. Patrick frowned before forcing a smile of his own on his face.

"Sorry, I just… You're a really nice guy and all but…" she trailed off and sighed.

"I understand, you still have a thing for Wayne don't you?" he asked. She looked up and there was a silence between them. When she said nothing he broke away from her. "I thought so."

"Patrick, I'm sorry…" he shook his head.

"Don't worry about it," he told her. He leaned forward and placed a kiss on her cheek. "You do look lovely, except the fact that it's obvious you haven't slept in some time," he told her.

"Thank you," she said softly. He nodded and walked away, leaving her alone in the middle of the dance floor. She crossed her arms and made her way out into the courtyard, ignoring the cold wind biting at her skin. The courtyard was simple, no where near as elegant as a garden at Wayne Manor would be, but it was nice. The bushes were covered with snow, and some small trees held no leaves on them. It was bare and empty, and the place seemed to crave for the attention of just one person, yet got none.

"I'm not a doctor, but usually people wear coats when they go outside in the cold," a voice spoke. She didn't have to look up to see who it was. His tone might have come off in a jokingly fashion, had it not been for the almost broken texture in his voice.

"Usually. But then again, you aren't a doctor," she muttered. Bruce couldn't stop the small smile that came to his face as he walked toward her. Her arms were crossed, but he could still see the goose bumps that erupted all over her arms. He shrugged off his jacket and placed it on her shoulders, causing her to jump.

"Better safe than sorry," he said. She nodded and pulled the jacket on, welcoming it's warmth. Depressed or not, he still smelled the same. He still held that new car smell, but the spicy kick of his cologne was what got her. They stood in silence as Bruce walked along the bushes.

"This fundraiser is for a really good cause Bruce, it's very kind of you," she told him. He nodded and turned toward her.

"Well, I can be a very kind man." Hanna nodded.

"When you want to be," she added. He paused then nodded.

"Yeah… when I want to be," he repeated. He stopped when he came upon a single white rose, very strange for the middle of winter. He picked it and let it rest in his hands. Hanna walked up to him and watched as his eyes traced over it.

"I didn't think roses were still growing," she muttered.

"Usually they don't. It's a surprise that this one is still alive." She nodded and pulled the coat on tighter. He looked over toward her. Her face was still pale, and she still looked tired. Yet, her eyes seemed content, and she seemed at peace as the wind blew a few strands of hair into her face. She looked somber, yet, quite lovely.

"I don't like this," she whispered. He frowned as she looked up.

"Don't like what?" he asked. His brown eyes met his own, and he couldn't deny his own heart clenching at the meeting. It was almost as if he was diving into a cold pool, and his senses were about to kick in after being so numb.

"I… I don't like that I can't talk to you. We were so close before we graduated. Then you left, and I thought you were dead. You came back so different, but I thought in time I would get used to it and we would be friends again. But after the whole thing with the Joker, it's like I lost both my friends in that fire. I want to go back to the way things were, before all of this." Tears began to form in her eyes as she confessed her feelings to him. He felt a lump in his throat as he looked away.

"Hanna, I don't… there is no going back for me," he whispered.

"What about moving forward?" she asked. He looked up just in time to see a tear slip down her cheek. He reached his hand our and let his palm rest on her cheek, ignoring the electricity that shot through his arm. She closed her eyes and leaned into his warm hand. She felt as though she had gone years without human contact, at least, not any that could make her veins feel as though they were on fire.

"Hanna…" he whispered. She opened her eyes and it was if someone had just gave him a kick start. His heart began to beat wildly as their eyes locked, and he was sure the goose bumps on his arm were not from the cold.

He pulled away suddenly and stumbled back. She looked a little taken back by his sudden movement and let her eyes rest on the ground where the rose in his hand fell. She kneeled down and picked it up, letting her fingers grazing of the soft petals before handing it over to him.

"You dropped it," she whispered. He took it then looked down.

"I think I should go," he muttered. She nodded and shrugged his jacket off.

"Thank you." He nodded and watched as she walked past him and back into the hall.

_

* * *

_

"Life sucks," Hanna muttered, watching as Rachel painted her toenails green.

_"Only sometimes… things will get better. He's just a boy," Rachel pointed out. Hanna laughed and grabbed a piece of gum from her pocket._

_"Says the girl who has had the biggest crush on her best friend for a year now." Rachel glanced up and shot her a look._

_"Don't get me started, you know I'd win." Hanna paused before nodding and leaning back._

_"You know, we'll be best friends forever," Hanna told her. Rachel raised an eyebrow._

_"Oh, and why do you say that?" she asked, finishing her paint job on one foot and was motioning for the other._

_"Because you know too many of my secrets." Rachel laughed and began painting her nails again. A silence came upon them before Rachel paused and looked up at her best friend._

_"Hanna, if Bruce did ask you out, would you say yes?" Hanna froze as she thought the question over._

_"No, because you like him." Liar._

_"Well… what if I wasn't around?" Hanna raised an eyebrow._

_"Why wouldn't-"_

_"Just answer the question…" Rachel snapped. Hanna sighed and ran a hand through her hair as she looked down._

_"Yeah, I guess I would say yes. Doesn't matter though, because he doesn't like me." Rachel paused before going back to her nails._

_"So, what about that new guy? I think his name is Logan." Hanna laughed and let her friend finish painting her nails._

* * *

"You will not believe what I have found on this new gang!" Sasha said, sitting down at Hanna's kitchen table. Hanna glanced up from her pile of bills, then looked back. Her new job helped her make it by, but there was a few expenses that seemed to kick her in the ass every month. She was living paycheck to paycheck, and she hated it.

"I'm not sure I really want to hear this," she said. Sasha ignored her and leaned forward.

"Apparently they are going around and taking over all the mobs businesses. The mob is getting pissed and have tried to retaliate, only to get their asses kicked every time," Sasha told her. Hanna began writing out a few checks before answering her.

"See, why would you tell me something like that? I'm raising a kid in one of the most crime populated city in the country." Sasha rolled her eyes and watched as she put away all her old bills.

"You talk to Bruce?" she asked. Hanna shook her head, pushing back her dark hair when it fell into her face.

"I haven't talked to him since the fundraiser," she confessed.

"Hanna, that was three months ago, it's May. You two share a moment and then all of a sudden you don't talk?" she asked. Hanna rolled her eyes.

"There is no reason to talk to him. He obviously doesn't care. Maybe it wasn't even a moment for him," she said. Sasha sighed and watched her friend as she began to get food out for dinner.

"Hanna, aren't you tired of being alone? It's been like… three years," Hanna sighed and leaned against her counter.

"You have no idea…" she whispered. Sasha stood up and pulled her friend into a hug.

"Hanna…"

"Mom!" Hanna pulled away from Sasha and looked to her son, who was running in with a letter.

"What's wrong?" Hanna asked.

"Nothing! I got invited to go to a soccer camp in Pennsylvania! It's the best soccer camp in the country!" Hanna took the letter and read over it.

"Wow, that's great champ! You must be really kicking those balls around," Sasha said. Danny simply beamed with pride and watched as his mother frowned slightly.

"Can I go mom? I know it's two months in another state, but I really want to do it! It starts right after school ends." Hanna put down the letter.

"It's a lot of money, Danny. I'll think about it," she said. Danny frowned and walked out of the kitchen. Sasha frowned and looked at her.

"How much is it?" she asked.

"About fifteen hundred dollars. Jesus, where am I going to get that kind of money. I could maybe afford half of it if I stick to bear minimal till he got back." Sasha shrugged.

"Talk to Nathans parents. I mean, they still see him and love him. I'm sure if you asked them they would be willing to help out," Sasha said. Hanna nodded and sat down at her table.

"I don't know if I can do this on my own. I get paid well enough, but it was so much easier when Nathan's military pension was helping out. I'm barely able to keep up with everything," Hanna muttered. Sasha frowned and patted her bag.

"If you need money or anything-"

"I can't ask you that. I'll be alright. I'll think of something."

_

* * *

_

Hanna sat up and enjoyed the feeling of the sun warming her skin. She was glad Bruce wanted semi-empty beach sunbathing.

_"Come on, you want to go in the water?" she heard Bruce ask Rachel. She glanced up from her book and smiled lightly._

_"Not really, I just painted my nails," Rachel replied. Bruce glanced over at Hanna, who shook her head._

_"No thanks," she answered._

_"What's your excuse?" he asked. She paused before shrugging._

_"No excuse, I just don't feel like it," she said. Before she could even react, she felt him pick her up and she let out a squeal. "Rachel!" she cried._

_"Oh no, you dug your own grave," she said. Before she could answer, she felt Bruce break out into a run, and seconds later she could feel the cold water on her skin._

_"Hold your breath," Bruce said. She did as she was told and felt him dive into the water, submerging them both. It was only then that he let go of her, so she could swim to the surface. She coughed up a little sea water and looked over to see Bruce laughing at her. She splashed him a little and crossed her arms._

_"You are a loser, I hope you know that." He laughed and dove under water again. The two of them played out in the water before Hanna let the waves carry her to the shore. She moved a little farther up on her own so the only thing the waves could touch were her feet. Her eyes closed and she enjoyed the feeling of the warm sun, as if the water on her skin made it warmer than it really was._

_"You still think I'm a loser?" she heard Bruce say. She nodded._

_"Yup," she answered. He chuckled and sat next to her. Her stomach still glistened from the water droplets, and her hair was a bit knotted. She already was tan from the summer sun, but he was sure after today, she would be even darker._

_"Well, you're a loser too," he said. She scoffed._

_"You wished I was a loser." He laughed and laid on the sand next to her._

_"It's so peaceful, like nothing in the world is wrong," Bruce muttered. Hanna nodded._

_"I wish… I wish the world always felt like this," she whispered. Bruce looked over to her and watched as her content look, suddenly turned into a frown._

_"I miss my dad too," he told her. She opened her eyes and looked at him._

_"Why did you really want to go to the beach?" she asked. He sighed and pressed his lips together._

_"Every year, on my fathers birthday, I lock myself in my room and don't come out. I do the same with my mother's birthday. I hated being around anything that reminded me of them those days. I just thought you'd wan to be away," he answered. She smiled and took hold of his hand._

_"Thanks, Bruce. I really appreciate it." He smiled._

_"Anything, for a friend."_

* * *

Hanna gave a sigh as she entered the hotel restaurant. She dressed herself in a simple black spaghetti strap dress, and let her hair fall over her shoulders. As much as she hated asking people for help, she hated seeing her son so upset even more. She was going to make sure that he was going to that soccer camp, even if she had to beg. Glanced around the table before her eyes landed on the older couple.

"Donald, Abby, it's nice to see you again." Abby smiled up at her.

"Same to you, how is work?" she asked.

"Busy." Donald smiled and took a sip of his whiskey.

"Good to see you. How is my grandson?" he asked. She sat down and thanked the waiter for the class of champagne. She was secretly glad she only agreed to meet them for drinks and not dinner. She was sure she couldn't afford it.

"He's fine, excited for the summer." Abby smiled and took a sip of her own drink.

"How lovely, is he still keeping up with soccer?" Hanna sighed.

"Actually, that's what I wanted to talk to you guys about." Donald and Abigail Sanders were not by any means rich. They were, however, well off. Donald had gotten lucky in the stock market and they made a few smart investments, earning them a pretty decent bank account to retire on. Yet both of them still worked regularly, probably to keep themselves busy.

"Is everything alright?" Donald asked. Hanna nodded and took a big gulp of her drink, as if that would swallow her pride.

"Yeah, everything is fine. He's actually been asked to participate in a high end summer soccer camp." Donald raised his eyebrows.

"Really, that's quite an achievement. Where is it?" he asked.

"It's not too far from Philadelphia."

"How long is it?" Abby asked.

"About two months. It starts a few days after he get's out from school," Hanna said.

"Really, that's great. We'll have to have dinner or something before he leaves," Abigail said. Hanna took a deep breath.

"I really want him to go, but…" She trailed off.

"But?" Donald asked. She buried her face in her hands before looking at them.

"It's… expensive. I don't have enough money to pay for it. He really wants to go and I just-" Donald cut her off.

"We'll take care of it," he said.

"I can pay for about half of it but-"

"No dear. We will take care of it. How much?" he asked. She froze for a second.

"I'm sorry?" Abigail smiled and took her hand.

"We'll pay for the whole thing," she said. Hanna shook her head.

"No, I can't let you do that. He's my son and I-"

"He's our grandson, we want to make sure he is taken care of," Donald said.

"But-" Abigail reached out and took a hold of her hand.

"Hanna, Danny is our grandson, we'd do anything we could for him. He's the last piece of our Nathan we have left. We have the money to send him, it is the least we can do for him. Not to mention you. You have done a wonderful job taking care of him, he's going to grow up into a wonderful young man. Just like his father," Abigail said. Hanna wiped a few tears that had come to her eyes and smiled at the older couple.

"Thank you, you have no idea how much I appreciate this," she said softly. Donald smiled and they continued their drinks. After an hour, Hanna bid the couple a good night and made her way out of the hotel. She must have just walked into the lobby when she heard her name being called.

"Hanna!" she paused and turned around.

"Bruce?" she asked. He walked up to her and their eyes met. He didn't look as worn out as he had been the last time she saw him. His eyes still looked a bit dull, yet there seemed to be just a slight glimmer behind them.

"Hey, what are you doing here?" he asked. She could tell immediately that there must have been a business partner or someone from the press nearby, but smiled anyway.

"I was meeting my former in-laws. What are you doing here?" she asked.

"Business meeting," he replied. She nodded and looked down. After an awkward moment he spoke once more. "How… how have you been?" he asked.

"Uh… I've been better," she answered. He frowned and nodded. "And you?"

"Much of the same really. It is good to see you though." She smiled and nodded.

"Thank you. It's good to see you too," she answered. He paused before taking a deep breath.

"Hanna, what are you doing in a couple of weeks?" he asked. She raised an eyebrow.

"Why? You need someone to help you move?" she asked. He chuckled and shook his head.

"No, I wanted to know if you wanted to have dinner. To sort of catch up, and… other things." She froze as his eyes bore into her own. Dinner? He wanted to have dinner? They hadn't talked in months and he suddenly had the urge to talk over lobster.

"Uh… sure," she said softly. He smiled.

"I guess I'll call you. It'll be great to… catch up." She nodded numbly, as she tried to process what he was saying.

"Sure… just um… okay," she said. He smiled and hugged her quickly before walking away. She paused before turning around and walking to the closest bus stop, her head spinning of what had just happened.

_

* * *

_

"Rachel, if we became lawyers, we could totally rule over this city," Hanna muttered.

_"Oh yeah, you a lawyer… I seriously doubt that could happen…" Hanna raised an eyebrow at Bruce._

_"Why the hell not?" she asked._

_"You're too nice. Lawyers have to be ruthless, the nice ones let criminals go," Bruce said. Hanna scoffed._

_"Fine, I might not be a lawyer at first, but I don't know what I'd do…" Rachel shrugged._

_"Why don't you do something with music?" Hanna shrugged and laid back on Bruce's couch._

_"Maybe, I wouldn't go into performance though…"_

_"You should teach," Bruce said. Rachel and Hanna looked at him._

_"Teach?" Rachel asked._

_"Yeah… like a music teacher." Hanna thought about it for a moment before shrugging._

_"Maybe, I still want to be a lawyer…"_

* * *

"Come on guys… think about the rhythm. It's really not all that difficult if you don't over think it," Hanna said. Before she could continue the doors opened and the principle walked in, followed by a couple men in suits. It took her a moment before she realized that Bruce was among them.

"Good Morning, Miss Grey," Mrs. Adams said.

"Morning Principle Adams… gentlemen," Hanna said.

"I hope you don't mind, Mr. Wayne and his board member wished to see the music program, I hope you don't mind." Hanna nodded and gestured to a few seats in the back of the room. All of them too their places and Hanna went back to her class.

"Flutes, try not to make the phrases so choppy and make it flow together a bit more. Percussion, I know you guys love to hit the drum, but when you do it you have to do it time. Or else it just sounds like you guys are a bunch of monkeys back there," She said. The class giggled and she began to continue on. The class played the song once more, and Hanna stopped them.

"Alright, that was better, tubas put some more emphasis on the quarter note triplet, I'm loosing some sound from you guys. Clarinets, I could use a bit more first clarinet sounds, the seconds are drowning you out," Hanna said. "Now… what kind of crescendos are we working with?" Hanna asked. A boy raised his hand, and even Hanna could feel the board members gaze on him.

"Ninety ten?" he asked.

"Good guess, but it's actually not. For this type of music ninety ten crescendos aren't appropriate. We're actually going to have to steadily crescendo. So let's try it, from measure fifteen," she said. The class picked up their instruments and began playing. They continued to practice this way, all the while the board members watched down intently. Eventually it was getting close to the end of class, and all the students were getting ready to leave.

"Wait, Miss Grey… I have a question!" a girl said. Before Hanna could answer the bell rang and students began piling out of the class room. Hanna walked up to the young lady playing piano and smiled.

"What's your question?" she asked.

"Miss Grey." Hanna turned around and glanced at the principle.

"Yes?" she asked.

"We are leaving, thank you for this opportunity," Hanna smiled and turned back to her student, not paying any attention to them.

"Did you still have a question, Lauren?" Lauren paused before shrugging.

"Yeah, but my class is all the way across the school," she said.

"I can write you a pass, if you'd like," Hanna suggested. Lauren nodded.

"I don't understand how you want me to play this part," Hanna glanced down at the sheet and read it over.

"Here, slide over… I'll help you out," she said. Lauren did as she was told and watched as Hanna played it for her. Lauren watched carefully and her eyebrows furrowed.

"I don't…" she paused an looked at the music.

"Just play it like you would a scale. Now try it, you can just play down an octave," Hanna instructed. Lauren nodded and began playing, messing up after a few notes.

"Crap," Lauren muttered.

"It's alright, take a deep breath and try again… slower." Lauren nodded and tried it once more, hitting each note perfectly. She smiled and tried again, going faster and hitting it perfectly again.

"I think I have it," Lauren said. Hanna smiled and patted her shoulder.

"See, you just need to take it slow. Here, I'll write you a pass," Hanna said as she heard the second bell ring. Lauren stood up and grabbed her backpack and waited for Hanna to write a pass.

"Thanks again, Miss Grey," Lauren said. Hanna smiled and handed her the pass.

"No problem, I'll see you tomorrow, Lauren." Lauren smiled once more and walked out of the class room. Hanna sighed and picked up one of her music scores.

"Interesting class you have." Her head shot up and her heart got caught in her throat when she saw Bruce making his way toward her.

"I thought you left already?" she asked.

"No, the board members did. I hope you know that a lot of your students make a lot of inappropriate jokes," he said, stopping a few feet away from her.

"Their high school students, it's understandable…" she said. He shrugged.

"I suppose," she chuckled and turned toward him.

"So…"

"You're a really good teacher," he said. She turned a little pink.

"Thanks, but it's really nothing," she replied. He took a few steps forward, causing her breath to catch in her throat.

"You really are. You care about your students, you help them. It's a good thing you decided to be a teacher instead of a lawyer," he said. She looked down.

"It's thank to you that I became a teacher." He furrowed his eyebrows.

"What?" he asked.

"You told me that I would be a better teacher than a lawyer… I decided you were right," she said. He smiled and chuckled.

"I can't believe you remember that," he muttered.

"I remember everything you told me." They stood in silence before he spoke once more.

"So, about dinner…"

_

* * *

_

Hanna kept her eyes on her drum as she quickly went through the rudiment in front of her. She was bored out of her mind. She was waiting for Rachel to finish her debate team meeting, and waiting for Bruce to finish his detention. She eventually ventured into the band room and began to mindlessly play the drum. She heard the door to the room open and looked up.

_"Oh, sorry… I thought the room was empty." She shook her head at the boy. He must have been a Senior as well, but she couldn't say she knew him personally. His red hair was cut short, and his hazel eyes were roaming around the room._

_"Nope, it's just me in here…" Hanna said, putting her sticks together._

_"You don't have to stop, I was just coming in real quick," he said. She chuckled and bit her lip to keep from laughing and looked down._

_"Sorry," she said. He rolled his eyes._

_"Wow, what are you… a freshmen? That's so inappropriate" he asked. She shrugged._

_"Sometimes… but it was freaking hilarious," she replied. He smiled and walked over to her._

_"So, what are you playing?" he asked. She shrugged._

_"Nothing really, just messing around," She explained. He nodded and they looked at each other for some time._

_"I'm Ian… by the way…" he said, holding out his hand for her to shake._

_"I'm Hanna… nice to meet you," she said. He smiled and looked down at the drum before looking back up at her._

_"So… do you have a boyfriend?" he asked. She shook her head._

_"Nope."_

_"Would you like one?" he asked. She chuckled and put her sticks in her back pocket._

_"No, not really." He frowned a bit._

_"Well… what about a date? That's can't be too bad, right?" he asked. She paused before shrugging._

_"I guess not, who should I ask out though?" she asked. He began to laugh before moving a bit closer to her._

_"How about me?" Before she could say another word, the door opened and Bruce walked in._

_"Hey Bruce…" Hanna said, moving away from Ian. He gave a small forced smile and glared in Ian's direction._

_"Hanna… who is this?" he asked. She shrugged and grabbed her back pack._

_"No one important. I'll see you around… Ian," she called. He sighed and ran a hand through his red hair._

_"Yeah… see you around." Hanna waved and exited the room with Bruce._

_"So… is that your new boyfriend?" Bruce asked. She rolled her eyes._

_"No, he's just some guy who asked me out. Why? You jealous?" she asked, a small tint of hope coating her voice. He rolled his eyes._

_"Yeah right, I'm just trying to make sure no one takes advantage of you. You tend to be a bit ditzy every now and then," he said. She rolled her eyes and continued to walk down the hallway._

_"Whatever, your jealous," she said, walking away from him. He stopped walking and watched her walk down the hallway._

_Was he?_


	13. Chapter 13

**Disclaimer: I own nothing of the DC universe or Warner Brothers. I especially don't own anything Mr. Nolan has brilliantly written (Have you seen Inception?). I make no profit from this, I'm simply writing this for shit's and giggles. Please do no steal my OC's, they ARE mine and I will be very angry if you take them. And the Plot not associated with DC or Nolan's script is mine. Do not steal that either. **

* * *

"I'm going to miss you mom," Danny said, a frown on his face. Hanna smiled and kissed the top of his head.

"I know, I'll miss you too. Go say goodbye to your grandparents," she said. He nodded and ran off to the car, where the Sanders were standing. She sighed and crossed her arms, trying so hard to not let the tears fall from her eyes. This was good for him. This was a chance for him to excel in soccer and make new friends. She glanced over at a few of the other parents who were kissing their children goodbye before they left on the bus. She wished Nathan could have been here to help her through this, to convince her that what she was doing was alright.

"Mom…" She glanced back down where her son was standing and moved so she was closer to his level.

"You have everything you need… right?" she asked. He nodded.

"Yeah… I think so. Are you going to be alright?" he asked. She smiled and placed a hand on his cheek.

"Of course, you go have fun. This is what you wanted, right?" he nodded and hugged her tightly.

"I love you mom," he said. She took a deep breath to hold back the tears and kissed his forehead. She pulled him tighter before pulling away.

"I love you too, baby. Be safe, and have fun… alright?" he nodded and hugged her once more before grabbing his back pack and walking toward the bus. He paused before going on the bus and turned toward her, giving a small wave. She smiled and waved back at him, and waited for the bus to leave. The bus started up and she saw her sons face in the back of the bus and waved goodbye, smiling when he ecstatically waved back.

"He'll be fine, Hanna… this is what he wanted," she heard her mother say. Hanna nodded and looked down when the bus drove off.

"I know… I just… I'm going to miss him." Her mother put a hand on her shoulder.

"I know baby… I know. Did you want me to stay with you?" she asked.

"No, I know you have a late lunch with Alice, I'm just going to go home and finish up some paperwork. I could use a ride though," Hanna said. Her mother smiled and nodded.

"Of course, come on," she said. Hanna followed her mother to her car and they headed toward Hanna's apartment.

"So… have you talked to Bruce?" Her mother asked. Hanna turned bright red and looked down at her hands.

"Uh… a little," she confessed. Her mother chuckled and glanced at her daughter.

"How is he?" she asked. Hanna paused to consider the question.

"Different, he still seems like her broken, but he's making an effort now," Hanna said.

"Well, it's been a year, I'd hope he'd make an effort by now," Mrs. Grey said. Hanna shrugged and grabbed her purse when they stopped in front of her apartment building.

"Thanks for the ride mom, I'll call you tomorrow," Hanna said. She leaned in and pressed a quick kiss to her mothers cheek.

"Of course, be safe honey." Hanna exited the mini-van and entered her building, pausing to pick up the mail, and then climbing the stairs to her apartment.

"Elevator broken again?" a voice asked. Hanna smiled at her neighbor, who looked to be taking his dog out for a walk.

"Yeah, but it's good exercise, right?" Hanna asked. He chuckled and nodded.

"True. Have a nice day, Hanna." She smiled and gave him a small wave.

"Same to you, Mr. Torres," she replied. He waved and she entered her small apartment. The living room was a bit messy with remains from Danny's previous action figure battle with his friends. She decided to put off cleaning up for a bit and went to the kitchen to go through her mail. She frowned at a couple of bills and decided to look at them later. Her phone ran and she picked it up before looking at the caller ID.

"Hello?" She asked.

"Hanna," a deep voice replied. A smile came to her lips almost immediately, and she put the rest of her mail down.

"Bruce, it's good to hear from you," she said.

"It's good to talk to you, I wanted to call a little earlier, but you know how work can be," he said. She gave an absent minded nod and then realized that he couldn't see her over the phone and blushed.

"I would say I understand, but I get summers off," she chuckled. He laughed lightly, causing her to smile wider.

"Perks of being a teacher. I guess I'm in the wrong profession," he commented. Hanna sat down at her table and let her eyes drop to the table.

"Perhaps, then again… you're doing pretty well for yourself."

"This is true… I traded a summer off for money, what was I thinking?" he asked. She smirked and let her fingers tap on the table lightly.

"You obviously weren't." He laughed and there was a silence between them.

"So… How about dinner Saturday night?" he asked. Hanna blushed and was thankful that they were on the phone.

"I suppose, the thing is, I don't-"

"I'll pay, and Alfred can baby-sit for Danny, if needed," He interrupted.

"Danny isn't here, he just left for soccer camp, I just paid a bunch of money for him to be baby-sat for the summer," Hanna explained.

"Oh, well then it should be no problem… my treat." Hanna sighed and thought it over for a long moment.

"I guess… just dinner though, right?" she asked. Bruce laughed.

"Of course, we're just catching up." She nodded.

"Of course."

* * *

_Rachel gave a frustrated sigh as she attempted to curl her hair for a party. Hanna stood next to her, staring at a tube of lip-gloss and scrunching her nose._

_"What the hell is this? I mean… am I ever going to use it?" she asked. Rachel looked up and laughed._

_"Hanna, you use it all the time, it's just not shiny and you call it chap stick." Hanna snorted and dropped the tube on the table._

_"Lame, I don't see why we have to go to this party. I doubt it will be all that great, and I am missing practice for this," Hanna pointed out. Rachel finished her hair and grabbed the tube and took a hold of Hanna's arm._

_"Oh, poor little band geek is missing practice for a party. God forbid that happen!" Rachel said, taking some lip gloss and placing it on her friends lips. Hanna scrunched her nose once more and lightly shoved Rachel away._

_"Stop making fun of me, I like my band geek crap." Rachel nodded and began to mess with her hair._

_"Yes, but you need to make other friends. Come on, hang with me and let's party it out." Hanna sighed but then nodded._

_"Fine… let's go to the stupid freaking party."_

* * *

Hanna grabbed a tube of lip gloss from her purse and lightly coated her lips with it before puckering her lips at the mirror. She smoothed her hands over a deep blue sleeveless dress she had bought on sale. The neck dipped a bit lower, exposing her chest a little, and hugged her body. She didn't look too bad, but she felt oddly overdressed. She gave one last sigh before slipping on her heels and walking to the door. Before she could open the door, the sound of a knock startled her and she looked at the clock. It was only 6:20, ten minutes before she was supposed to meet him down stairs. She opened the door and gave him a small smile.

"Hey, Bruce, you are early," she said.

"Yeah, I hope you don't mind. I was in the area…" She nodded and grabbed her purse.

"No, I'm fine. We ready?" she asked. He nodded and followed her down the stairs. When they got to the street she turned and smiled at him.

"Here, the car is over there," he said, pointing to his new silver Porsche.

"That's not a car Bruce, that's a stallion," she said. He chuckled and opened the door for her. She slid in and took a deep breath. This felt more like a date than friends catching up; and it had been a while since she had gone on a date. Bruce got into the car and started it up, making the engine purr and arm hair stand up on end. There was just something about a nice car that made her happy.

"So… where are we going?" she asked.

"Just a restaurant not too far from here. Don't worry about paying. This one is one me," he said. Hanna frowned.

"Bruce, I can-"

"I know… just let me pay for you," he told her. She sighed but gave a nod and continued to look out the window. She envied a time where she could talk to him about anything. Now, it seemed like there was a line between them. One word about Rachel and the whole evening could fall to the ground. Her eyes followed a few things on the street as he drove. It had been a while since she was in a car like this.

"I hope you don't mind Italian food… I remembered that you used to like it just fine," he said. She nodded and looked into her lap.

"Italian is just fine, thank you," she replied. He nodded and pulled up to a restaurant.

"Damn…" she looked up and followed his gaze to the herd of paparazzi standing on the other side of the car. She shrunk down further into the seat and looked at him.

"Bruce, I can't be seen like this. Not if they find out who I am," she muttered. He paused and nodded, driving away from the entrance and turned around the block.

"I step one foot out of my place, and I'm surrounded by hundreds of photographers," he hissed. Hanna looked over at Bruce and frowned. She could tell that he was annoyed, and so was she. They just wanted a simple dinner with no interruptions, somehow, that seemed to be a far too difficult task.

"What should we do?" she asked. He sighed and turned one last time, stopping in front of a small door. He turned off the car and looked at her.

"Sorry it's not all that glamorous, but it's better than you being bombarded with photographers and gossip." Hanna smiled softly and realized he took her to the kitchen entrance of the restaurant.

"Thank you," she told him. He nodded and stepped out of the car, walking over to her side and opening it up before she had a chance to. A small blush rushed to her cheeks as he helped her out of the car.

"I have a private room for us to eat in. I don't want you to worry about the paparazzi," he said. Hanna was thankful for Bruce's consideration, especially since her position as head of the music department was still quite new. Her heels clicked in the small back parking lot as he opened the door to the kitchen and took her hand.

"Mister Wayne… you are coming through the kitchen," a man said. Bruce placed a smile on his lips and looked at the head chef.

"Yes well, I was not interested in running into the press tonight. Is Antonio available?" Bruce asked. Hanna noticed that a few chef's eyes were on her, trying to figure out why she was not one of the hottest models of Gotham. If Bruce were not holding onto her hand, she was sure that she would have crossed her arms.

"Yes, I shall send for him. Louise, find Antonio, tell him Mister Wayne is in the kitchen and waiting for his table." A small chef nodded and handed off his work to another before running off. The Head Chef brought his work over and looked at Hanna.

"_Salute, Bella. _Bruce, who is this exquisite woman you bring into my kitchen?" The chef asked. Hanna chuckled lightly and went to shake his hand.

"Hanna Grey, and you are?" she asked. He took her hand and placed a gentle kiss upon it, making a very small blush rush to her face.

"Isaia Lazzaro, head chef of this fine establishment," he said. Hanna's eyes went wide.

"Master Chef Lazzaro? I've read your book!" she said. Chef Lazzaro smiled and tilted his head to the side.

"Have you now, _Bella?_" he asked. Bruce raised an eyebrow and watched them converse.

"Yes. I used it to prepare dinner for my former in-laws. They absolutely loved it," she said. Chef Lazzaro chuckled and nodded.

"It is always a pleasure to help out another chef." Hanna chuckled and watched as he began to stir one of his many dishes. "Now, what in heavens name are you doing with Mister Wayne, _Bella_, I'm sure a woman of your caliber has many men following her."

"You flatter me, Master Chef," Hanna said. Lazzaro chuckled and winked at her. Hanna blushed once more and watched as he stirred the chocolate looking substance. He was a fairly good looking, only in his mid forties or so. His Italian heritage was prominent and his accent even cut through a little.

"Not at all. Will you taste this?" he asked. Hanna paused before nodding and taking a step forward and placing her purse on the table. Lazzaro gently fed her the chocolate mixture, smiling as she smiled.

"Perfect, Bruce you need to try this!" she said.

"I'll order it for dessert," he told her.

"You never did answer my question, _Bella_." Bruce held back a small glare as Lazzaro called her _Bella_. She was here with him, not with Lazzaro.

"Bruce and I are old friends, we're here to catch up," she confessed, grabbing her purse.

"Ah, nothing like catching up. Friends should stay together till the end, no?" Hanna's smile faltered but nodded. Lazzaro noticed but said nothing.

"Mister Wayne, I am sorry for the delay!" a voice called. Bruce looked up and smiled as Antonio made his way over.

"No problem, we were just having a chat with Isaia over here."

"Well, I should get you to your table," Antonio said. Bruce nodded and looked at Hanna, who smiled at Lazzaro.

"It was a pleasure to meet you, Master Chef," she said. He took her hand once more and kissed it.

"Pleasure is all mine. Come again soon, _Bella_." Hanna nodded and jumped as Bruce took her free arm and led her out of the kitchen, and immediately into a private room. The walls were lined with Italian artwork, and the floor looked like an expensive mahogany. A small chandelier was placed in the middle of the room, overlooking a table with candles and two dinner settings.

"Here you are. One private suite for Mr. Wayne and guest," Antonio said. Hanna went to grab her chair, but was beat by Bruce pulling out her chair for her.

"Oh, thank you," she said softly. He smiled and sat across from her.

"So, what can we start you two out with?" Hanna looked at the menu before shrugging.

"Whatever is good and cheep," she said. Bruce chuckled and shook his head.

"You're best wine, no matter the costs," he corrected. Hanna looked down in shame as Antonio took the wine menu.

"Best wine, coming up," he repeated, walking out of the room. Hanna took a deep breath and looked down at the table cloth.

"You don't have to worry about price Hanna, I'll take care of it," Bruce told her.

"I know, I'm sorry, it's a horrible habit of mine," she confessed. Bruce nodded and looked at her once more. Even in the soft light of the room, he could pick out the sad expression on her face. In a way, he almost felt it was his fault. He had been so wrapped up in himself that he didn't seem to remember his friendship with Hanna. He missed being her friend more than he missed a lot of things. She was loyal and caring, and no matter what he said or did, she always came back.

"So… how is work?" she asked. Bruce smiled and shrugged.

"Just fine, busy as ever. And you?" she shrugged.

"Not a whole lot to do during the summer. I started some summer school work, and that usually brings in some money." Bruce frowned when he saw a look of worry pass over her beautiful features.

"Are you…" he trailed off. How was he supposed to ask someone if they were having financial problems?

"It's… tough, without Nate helping out. I'm managing." Before Bruce could say anything else a waiter came in with their wine and poured them a drink. They quickly ordered and they were left alone once more. Hanna took a deep breath and forced a smile on her face.

"So… what did you do those years you were missing?" she asked. Bruce looked up and his eyes met hers. He could tell she was trying her hardest, she really wanted to make this work. As friends. Yet, as Bruce looked at her, his brown eyes meeting her deep blue, he questioned if he wanted the same thing. Sure she was beautiful; with her hair barely graying, and the wrinkles around her face barely defined, but she was no Rachel. He quickly shook his head at that thought and Hanna took it as something else.

"You don't have to talk about it, if you don't want to…" He looked back at her and took a deep breath.

"You first… what did you do?" Suddenly, a smile broke out on her lips and she chuckled lightly.

"You know what I did. I got married and had Danny," she reminded him.

"I know… but… there has to be something that happened… how did you and your husband meet?" Hanna jumped as a waiter entered and gave them their food. She thanked him, earning a small chuckle from Bruce, and took a bite of her pasta. "So…"

"Oh… well. I was at a club near a army base with a few friends, and some of the new recruits were allowed out to party and we just… met. I don't know how to explain it, he sat down and we began to talk."

"You were at a club?" Hanna laughed and shot him a look.

"My roommate made me go. Don't laugh, it ended up being the best thing for me," she confessed. Bruce stopped laughing and watched as her eyes darkened a little. He always figured it had to be hard losing a spouse, he guessed it was similar to him losing Rachel in a sense.

"So… was it love at first sight?" he asked. She took another bite of her food and thought it over.

"No, I don't think so. I really wasn't interesting in dating him, he was cute, but I wasn't interested." Bruce raised an eyebrow.

"So… what changed?"

"He was very persistent, and very romantic. The first day he asked me out he brought me a rose, when I said no he came back the next day with two roses. Each time I said no he came back with one more rose. By the time he had at least two dozen I finally said yes. After that, I just… fell in love." The adoration in her voice made him smile. He secretly wished someone would talk about him like that.

"So… after you said yes you just… got married?" he asked. She shook her head and took a sip of her wine.

"No… we didn't get married for a while. He said he didn't want to rush me, which I was thankful for. Once we were married, life just seemed to fly by. Soon enough I was giving birth to Danny and well… the rest is simple," She explained.

"Was it hard, with him being called away?" he asked. She frowned and gave a small nod.

"Very. When he was gone it was like… he took a part of me with him. When he was home though… life was perfect. I had my son and my husband, I was happy."

"You seem to really like playing housewife," Bruce chuckled. Hanna laughed as well.

"I don't know if I like it. I love being a mom. I love my son more than anything in this world, and seeing him grow up… it's almost magical…" There was a pause between them while Bruce let her words sink in.

"Why didn't you have more kids? Or did your husband not want anymore?" Hanna frowned once more and took a deep breath.

"No… he wanted a ton I just… we couldn't…" Bruce raised an eyebrow.

"What do you mean?" she shrugged.

"I just…" Bruce looked down when he realized it might have been too personal.

"You don't have to tell me… I was just asking."

"No… it's fine. We just… we tried. I even got pregnant a few times, but I lost most of them before my second trimester. After a while, we just figured that Danny was going to be our only child, not that it stopped us from trying." Bruce frowned and took her hand in his. He could only imagine what it might have been like, to try so hard for a family and fail every time.

"I'm sorry," he whispered. She shook her head and forced a smile on her face.

"Don't be. It's in the past. I don't think I'll be having any more kids anyway…" the waiter came back and Bruce ordered a desert for the both of them, and waited for the man to leave before he turned to Hanna again.

"You still have Danny…" he reminded her.

"Yes… I still have Danny. What about you? I mean… what happened during those years?" she asked. He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. He figured he would eventually have to tell her the gist of it.

"I traveled around, drop the name Bruce Wayne and lived around people who were… not so nice."

"You mean like… criminals?"

"In a word. Most of the people were just desperate to live, like I was. We did what we needed to do in order to survive," he explained.

"Sounds like an eye opener," she commented. Desert was brought to them and Bruce waited for her to taste it before digging in himself.

"It was… I think it changed me in a lot of ways," he admitted. Hanna stopped eating and looked at him.

"If that's true… why are you still acting like a spoiled little rich boy?" she asked. Bruce flinched at the term, knowing she had used it on him many times in anger.

"Hanna, it's hard to explain…" he muttered.

"Then give me the cliff notes version. I mean, I know when we were kids you did it to fit in, but we're not kids anymore. You have the power and the means to change the world, yet… you're not."

_'I'm trying,_' he wanted to shout, but he kept his mouth closed.

"When I came back… everyone had changed. I wanted to make a difference, but I just… I guess I just wanted to party hard and forget about everything else. It was stupid, but it's what I did. Now no one will take me seriously," he confessed. Telling her that he was batman would probably not have been a smart idea. Not at all.

"Well… that's your own fault. No one says you can't try though. Eventually someone is going to see that you're doing good," she told him.

"You think it's that simple?" She shrugged and delicately wiped some chocolate off her lip with her napkin.

"I think if you throw enough money at them and stop the playboy act, you can do anything," she explained. Bruce chuckled and shrugged.

"I guess so." Hanna nodded and watched as the waiter brought back the check. She reached for her purse, but Bruce shook his head.

"Bruce…"

"I've got it, Hanna, don't worry," he assured her. She sighed but shot him a thankful smile. Sometimes it was just too painful to pull out her credit card. Bruce quickly paid for their meal and held out his hand to her.

"Shall we?" She smiled and took his hand, letting him lead her through the kitchen and to the car.

"Thank you, Bruce…" she said as they began to drive off.

"Of course, Hanna… it was good to catch up," he told her. She smiled and glanced out of the car as they continued on.

"I really do believe you can make a difference Bruce… I just wish you saw it too," she confessed. Bruce glanced over and noticed how the lights from the cars hit her face. She looked almost peaceful as the hum of the car was their only soundtrack.

"Making a difference isn't as easy as everyone thinks, Hanna…" she sighed and turned toward him, her blue eyes scanning over him.

"True, but you never did do anything easy, did you?" she asked. A smile came to his own lips and he shrugged.

"I guess not." Hanna sighed and leaned against the window, closing her eyes and letting the vibrations of the car lull her into a calm state. Bruce just continued to drive on, pausing to glance at her every now and then. He missed her. He missed her a lot more than he thought he did. God, why did he ever stop talking to her?

"Hanna… we're here," he said. Hanna opened her eyes and looked outside the window to see the door to her apartment.

"So we are," she said softly. He turned off the car and let the events of the night continue over. For the first time in a while, he had a good night. He didn't have the urge to drink himself into a coma, and he didn't want to go out and beat criminals into a pulp. He wanted more nights like this one.

"Hey… you think we could… catch up again in a couple nights?" he asked. Hanna smiled, and gave a small nod.

"Sure… just um… let's keep it simple. Beers and a movie at my house?" she asked.

"Sounds perfect," he agreed. Before she could get out of the car he leaned forward and pressed his lips to her forehead, causing her cheeks to heat up.

"Um…"

"Good night, Hanna…" he answered. He pulled back and they stared at each other for a long moment.

"Good night, Bruce."

* * *

_"Hanna Grey, I swear to God if you do not come back here I will… I will…"_

_"You will what? Stutter at me?" Hanna asked, her blue eyes sparkling at the boy in front of her. Bruce was furious. How dare she send Kristin James in the closet with him. He absolutely loathed the girl and she damn well knew it._

_"You enjoy torturing me, don't you?" he asked, crossing his arms._

_"Oh come on, like you don't enjoy a little tonsil hockey on a couch every now and then. How long has it been since you've gotten laid? A couple weeks?" she asked. Bruce leaned against the wall as Rachel tried to fix her hair._

_"Get off your high horse, Hanna. You know I don't like her, so why would you send her in for seven minutes in heaven?" he hissed._

_"Oh, I don't know, because it's hilarious? You should have seen your face," Hanna said, laughing at the look Bruce had upon leaving the room. Before Bruce could reply Rachel spoke._

_"Alright, let it go. Bruce, Hanna is secretly evil, get over it."_

_"I am not secretly evil! Bruce is just mad because Kristin told everyone he was a horrible kisser," Hanna snapped. Bruce's eyes went wide and he turned to Rachel, who shook her head at her best friend, telling her she was disappointed in her lack of keeping a secret._

_"She's telling everyone I'm a bad kisser?"_

_"Well you are!" Bruce walked up to Hanna and glared down at her._

_"I'm only as good as the person who taught me. Since you were my first kiss-"_

_"-Oh, don't even go there. We were ten and I felt bad because you didn't get kissed by Veronica Peters. Besides, I've learned since then," Hanna pointed out._

_"Really? So have I!"_

_"Bullshit, now why don't you go cry in a corner then get the-"_

_"-ENOUGH!" Rachel shouted, causing both of them to shut up immediately. After a few minutes Rachel took a deep breath. "Can we please watch this movie? Please?" she asked. Bruce and Hanna looked at each other before sitting on the couch and crossing their arms. Rachel just shook her head and sat in-between them. It was going to be a long night._

* * *

Hanna jumped at the sound of her buzzer going off and looked at the clock. She had gotten so lost in the letter she was reading from Danny that she completely forgot that Bruce was coming over. She quickly placed the letter on the counter and ran to the door.

"Yes?" she asked into the intercom.

"It's Bruce," he answered. She nodded and hit the button to let him in, holding it for a minute before letting it go. He was here. A second later a knock broke out and she opened her door, smiling as his warm eyes met her deep blue.

"Hey, you're right on time," she said. He nodded and held up a small case of beer. She smiled and finally looked over his attire. It had been a while since she had seen him in jeans and a tee shirt, and the addition of the leather jacket just made her feel as though they were back in high school.

Bruce also smiled down at her. The pair of jeans she wore hugged her waist, and her tank-top did little to hide the rest of her frame. She was much curvier than he remembered, but he contributed that to giving birth to a child. It tended to change a woman's body. Not that he was complaining.

"So… food?" he asked. She nodded and let him in, letting him get another glance around the apartment. It seemed that with Danny off to soccer camp she had time to keep the house free of toys from her floor. Though he could clearly see some of his things stacked in a corner.

"Sorry it's not too clean. I mean… it's cleaner than with Danny around, he's a messy kid." Bruce chuckled and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Really Hanna, it's fine. Let's just relax," he said. Bruce couldn't deny he was excited. It had been far too long since he had been able to just sit back on a couch and relax. Somehow, he felt it would be far too easy to do with Hanna. Batman was going to take the night off, and Bruce Wayne was going to enjoy a night with a beautiful woman… erm, friend.

"Alright, I have the Pizza in the oven, let me just go get it. Sit, make yourself at home," she told him, gesturing to her couch. He nodded and waited for her to get into the kitchen before sitting on the dark blue couch. He placed the beer on the floor and looked at the movies in front of them. She really did have a variety, which surprised him. He didn't remember her being a huge movie buff.

"Alright, here we go," she said, placing the pizza box on the table in front of them. He smiled and opened it, his mouth almost watering at the sight of the pizza.

"Looks fantastic," he commented.

"Same place we ordered to as kids. Danny loves it." Bruce nodded and grabbed a slice. He had been back in Gotham for so long and had yet to get a decent slice of pizza.

"So… which movie should we watch?" he asked. Hanna shrugged and looked at the choices.

"No clue… Danny is really big on the movies, he got that from Nate… I have a few old movies, along with the new. Um, we could always watch Tron, or maybe that new Star Trek. Whichever you prefer," she told him. He shrugged and looked through the movies before picking one up.

"How about this one? Sherlock Holmes?" She shrugged and stood up, grabbing the movie and popping it in. Bruce let his eyes drift down to the back of her jeans and rest on her butt. This was not the first time he had seen her in jeans, but it was the first time he noticed how lovely the shape of her was in those jeans. She suddenly turned around and his eyes snapped back up to her. Thankfully, she was too busy looking over the remote to notice he was checking out her ass. The movie started up as she reached over and grabbed a slice of pizza and a bottle of beer. Bruce followed her lead and began to relax. A good hour into the movie and they were laughing and hardly even paying attention to the movie.

"Oh come on, I was in college! It was fun, while it lasted," Hanna said, a small blush on her face. Bruce shook his head and took another sip of beer.

"I wish I would have seen that. Did Nate know about your two month girlfriend?" he asked. Hanna's face turned redder and she covered her face in her hands.

"No, he didn't. This was before him. I just… didn't feel the need to tell him," she confessed. Bruce laughed again and grabbed another slice of pizza. Hanna sighed and grabbed a slice of her own.

"Well, I feel honored to know. I mean… wow. Way to go college," he chuckled. Hanna rolled her eyes and leaned back. She hadn't noticed before, but Bruce had actually moved a bit closer to her so they were now almost touching.

"Hmm… well, I guess West Chester is nothing compared to Princeton… for the short time you were there." Bruce shrugged and sighed. His eyes met hers and for a brief moment he was lost in them before remembering the question.

"Yeah, well… let's just say this is the first time since high school I've been able to truly just… enjoy a slice of pizza," he admitted. She shook her head and laughed.

"And they said that I'm too up tight. Seriously Bruce, you really just need to let go," she said, a small smirk on her lips. He gave her a mock glare and gently nudged her, causing her to miss her mouth with her pizza and smear it on her cheek. She gave a small little groan and Bruce laughed.

"You got something on your cheek," he told her. She glared at him and placed the pizza down and leaned over to grab a napkin.

"Thank you for that." Bruce frowned and grabbed the napkin before she could and leaned toward her. He stopped her from moving forward and brought his hand up.

"Here, let me just…" he trailed off and wiped the sauce off lightly. When he was finished he placed the napkin on a plate and turned toward her. She was silent as he continued to look at him, her eyes meeting his for a brief moment before they dropped to his lips. His own did the same. He forgotten how soft they were. He even wondered if they were still coated in that delectable chap-stick that made her taste like raspberries. He leaned forward even more and he heard her take a deep intake of breath.

"Bruce…" he paused for a brief second, but didn't take his eyes away from her lips. He was so close, if he just leaned a little closer…

"Hanna…"

"What are you doing?" she asked softly. He was silent for a good moment. What was he doing? If he were to go through with this, it could mean the end of their relationship as friends, but they could be more. Is that what he wanted? He would be leaving Rachel, or rather the memory of Rachel, behind and moving on. He looked into her deep blue eyes once more and took a deep breath. Those deep pools of blue, how could he ever say no to them? It was the only time he felt as if he was cold and warm at the same time. He lifted his hand to graze her cheek and looked down to her lips once more.

"I'm letting go." A second later, his lips were on hers and she was lost. His lips were soft as the tentatively moved against hers, as if testing her reaction. She kissed back and moved a little closer to him, as if to give him a clue that she wanted more. Thankfully he seemed to get the message as he wrapped an arm around her waist and leaned forward, pinning her to the couch. A small groan escaped her lips as she leaned against something and pulled away to grab it. When she finally grabbed the thing poking at her back, she rolled her eyes to see it was the remote to the TV. She looked to the screen to see she had inadvertently changed the channel to the news.

"How romantic," she mumbled. Bruce quickly grabbed the remote and tossed it to the side.

"Forget the remote," he replied, his voice husky and low enough to send chills down her back. Before she could reply to his statement, he captured her lips once more, his lips more demanding than before. Hanna was almost shocked at the sudden change. She kissed back with the same amount of passion, her hands reaching up and tangling in his hair. His hand resting on her hip began to travel up wards, even going so far to travel under her shirt a little. The minute his hand touched her skin a moan made it's way from her throat and her back arched slightly. How long had it been since she had been with a man? Too long.

Bruce felt her press herself into his body and felt his own moan building up. His tongue traced her bottom lip and he felt her lips part ever so slightly to meet his tongue with her own. His hand inched up a little further and he felt his coarse fingers trace over smooth skin. Her skin was flush against his hand, and the feeling of her breasts pushing into his chest was enough to get him riled up. He pressed his hips into hers to relieve the tension in his groin, and thought for a second they maybe going too far. But damn, how long had it been since he had been with a woman, even a one night stand? Too damn long, that's how long.

His lips suddenly left hers and made a trail down her neck, pausing for a moment to tend to it properly. Hanna felt her breath come in short gasps and had a thought to stop him. They were supposed to be friends, what the hell were they doing? She opened her mouth to stop him, but a moan escaped her lips when she felt his teeth graze her skin. He smirked into her neck and let his tongue trace over the small mark he just left on her neck. Before he could go any further, a voice on the television cut in.

"_Reports say the attack on the bank was by a group of assailants all wearing what appeared to be Grecian togas. The bank teller said that for a moment, she thought they were all college kids coming in for some fun, but when they pulled out guns and other weapons, she knew it was more than a sick joke. It appears that the gang calling themselves 'The Olympians' have struck once more. Now all we have to ask is, will the death of five of Gotham's citizens be avenged by the police, or will the city turn to it's masked murderer for help?"_

"Bruce?" Bruce looked down at Hanna, not realizing that he had pulled away from her to watch the report. She was now looking at him breathless and confused. He pulled away even further and ran a hand through his hair. The city was practically calling for Batman, yet he was here with his tongue down a beautiful woman's throat. Funny how in the beginning of the night she was his friend, and now she was a beautiful woman. What the hell happened?

"Bruce… what…" she trailed off as she sat up and looked at him. Their night had went from a friendly get together, to a 'let me throw myself on top of you and see what happens.'

"Hanna… I…" he was silent as he looked at the TV. He could stay here and try and figure this out, or he could go and find out more about this gang. Somehow, the gang seemed to be less frightening. He suddenly stood up and grabbed his jacket.

"Wait! What are you-"

"-I need to go, I'm sorry," he told her. She stood up as well and followed him to the door.

"You need to go? Bruce, we need to talk about this! You can't just leave me hanging like this!" she snapped. Her mind was reeling by now. How the hell could he just leave her like that?

"I just need to do something, I promise we'll figure this out." He walked to the door and opened it before turning around and looking down at her. Hanna's face was still flush and he was sure she was just as aroused as he was. Yet, he couldn't go any further. Not so fast. If they jumped into bed tonight everything would be ruined. They were obviously thinking with their hormones. Once they sorted everything out, then yeah… maybe they could work on something.

"Bruce…" he heard her voice crack just a bit and he frowned. He leaned forward and kissed her forehead tenderly before sighing.

"We will figure this out… I just… I got to go. I'm sorry, Hanna…" and with that, he turned around and left her in the hallway of her apartment building. Her mind going a mile a minute, and her body hungry for more.

"Well then…"

* * *

_Do I have an excuse for updating after two year? Um… no. I'm honestly sitting here waiting for my playstation to cool down so I can play Skyrim or Lego HP, so I decided to update. I've been sitting on this chapter a while, and I think I've finally come to like it. I wrote three different scenarios and finally like this one. Sorry the beginning is a little… weird. I'm obviously rushing it a bit. Hopefully I can start getting it to a point where I'll be able to slow it down a little, but for now, it's rushing._

_Also, in the two years I've been MIA, I've been busy as hell. College came and totally kicked my ass, then I had to get a job to pay for shit and well… let's just say working 40 hours a week and taking classes at the local community college is not as easy as people told me it was. Fricken liars. Oh well… I guess I should probably go study my Italian homework or something… but my playstation is cool now so I'll just leave this post and go on my merry way._

_Hopefully I'll get some time to add to this. I finally got a direction, it's just a matter of getting there. Till next time my lovies. _


	14. Chapter 14

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything similar to DC comics, or anything Mr. Nolan has written. The only thing I own are things not associated with those two things. Do not steal!**_

* * *

_Hanna sighed as she sat in her room surrounded by boxes. It still baffled her that eighteen years of her life could be fitted into six or seven boxes. Then again, he mother reminded her that she wasn't bringing all of her things to West Chester. She leaned against the wall of her bedroom and glanced at the picture frame in her hands. It had been taken not long ago, of her and her two best friends. Well, she guessed she was still Bruce's best friend. She hadn't spoken to him since before they even graduated. She could still remember the terse event of taking pictures when they graduated, like the one in her hand. However, the one in her hand had them all giving a genuine smile. She smiled as she remembered Alfred trying to get the group to smile, sensing the tension. Eventually he sighed and looked at them._

_"At least pretend you all like each other," he snapped. Hanna was the first to chuckle, followed by the other two. She wasn't sure what it was, but the older mans exasperated statement just got to her. Their parents, and Alfred, deserved at least one good picture. There was a knock on the door and she looked up to see Rachel smiling down at her._

_"Almost done?" she asked. Hanna nodded and looked around the room._

_"Just about. You?" Rachel shrugged and sat down next to Hanna._

_"A few more boxes, but you know how it is," she said. Hanna nodded and they sat in a silence for a moment before Hanna handed her the photo frame and smiled._

_"Maybe you should keep it. I have an older one of us. One from when we were kids," she said. Rachel shook her head and handed it back._

_"Look, I know things are weird between you two, but you'll get over it." Hanna sighed and looked down at the photo._

_"Sometimes, Rachel… I'm afraid we're always going to be weird with each other," she muttered. Rachel frowned. True she also had feelings for Bruce, but so did Hanna. And obviously she was having trouble getting over this. She just wanted Bruce to stop being an idiot and talk to her. But he was in no better state than Hanna._

_"Let's hope not."_

* * *

"Sasha, let's not get carried away," Hanna said as she sat down at the table. Sasha ignored her friend and signaled the waiter.

"Two Paralyzers please," she said, sending a wink after him just for kicks. The waiter quickly left and Hanna sighed.

"Why did I convince you to take me out?" she asked softly.

"Because you need to get out. Come on, your son is being baby-sat for you. You have the ability to take home any guy tonight and not worry about waking your son up. It's beautiful." Hanna chuckled and smiled when the waiter brought over drinks.

"I doubt I'll be taking anyone home tonight. I've got too much to worry about," Hanna said, sipping her drink. Sasha frowned and looked at her friend.

"You still having trouble with the rent?" she asked, a sad smile on her lips. Hanna was silent for a moment before clearing her throat.

"Sasha… I think I might have to consider moving back with my mom. I don't know how I'm going to support my kid and myself at this rate," she admitted. Sasha took her hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze.

"Well, tonight we're not going to think about that. Instead, we're going to just have a good time, and if you happen to meet a guy then have your way with him. It's been what, two years?"

"Three… not that I'm counting." Sasha shook her head and tapped her drink.

"Oh yeah sweetie, you need to bring a guy home. No one should go three years without sex," she said. Hanna laughed and glanced around the bar. As appealing as taking home a man sounded, she doubted she would get that lucky. Most of the men here were in their early twenties, and the older ones were in their forties. No, she wasn't going to have much luck tonight.

"So… did Bruce ever call you back?" Sasha asked. Hanna winced and shot a look at her friend. Hanna had tried calling Bruce the day after their movie night, but he never picked up. Nor did he call her back. In fact, it had been five days and she heard nothing from him.

"No… I suppose I should be used to him just blowing me off." Sasha shook her head, pushing some of her brown hair out of her green eyes.

"You guys have this rather nasty pattern," she said, pointing out their small relationship problem.

"Oh really?"

"Yeah, the minute you take a step toward actually doing something, he runs off and sets you back six steps. Then of course he jumps eight steps and then repeat." Hanna chuckled and finished off her drink, causing the waiter to come over and replace her drink.

"Oh well… maybe I should find someone else. You think Jim Gordon has brothers? He's a gentleman," she said.

"Oh come on, you can do so much better than a Jim Gordon. What about that one guy who is always at those parties?" Hanna scoffed and took another sip of her drink.

"Jeez, way to narrow it down…" she said, mumbling under her breath slightly. Sasha kicked her and shot her a look.

"You know what I mean. Um… Dougherty! He seemed like a nice guy." Hanna scrunched her nose and shook her head.

"No thank you. Why don't we find you someone to date. You haven't gone out with anyone since Tony, and that was only two years after college."

"Ah yes… but I'm still getting laid," Sasha pointed out. Hanna's eyes went wide and she leaned forward.

"And who is this mysterious man you've been sleeping with?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

"A fellow reporter… well, photographer." Hanna chuckled and took another sip of her drink as Sasha finished hers.

"Well… at least someone is enjoying herself," she said. Sasha chuckled and looked up, frowning at the door.

"Speak of the devil," Sasha said, lowering her voice slightly. Hanna raised an eyebrow.

"Your photographer is here?" she asked. Sasha shook her head and looked at her friend.

"No… your man is here." Hanna furrowed her eyebrows and looked over just in time to see Bruce Wayne walk over to the bar and order a drink. Hanna scoffed and looked back at her own cup.

"Of course. Can't get rid of him, can I?" she asked.

"I could, if you'd like. Though I wouldn't worry too much about it. Some floozy will probably notice him and be all over him," Sasha said, trying to reassure her friend. Hanna flinched at the thought. She wasn't so sure she wanted that to happen either.

"Maybe… so, this photographer…" Sasha sensed her friends need to change the topic and quickly launched into a full description of her newest boy toy. Hanna nodded and tried her best to pay attention, but she couldn't deny she was distracted. Her eyes kept darting toward the bar, where she knew Bruce was standing at. Why did he have to be here? This was her night to get drunk with an old friend and forget about him and all the trouble he brought her. If she was smart she would have just ignored him and continue on with her life, but no one said she was smart.

"So… Your birthday is coming up," Sasha said. Hanna looked up surprised and thought it over.

"Oh… I guess it is. In a week right?" she asked as she furrowed her eyebrows.

"I find it a little sad you can't remember your birthday…"

"Me too actually, must be that old age hitting me." The sound of someone clearing their throat caused both women to look up at the man standing over them. Hanna felt her stomach do a pleasant flip and she tried to keep her composure.

"Bruce…" she whispered. Bruce's warm brown eyes were fixed on her and he smiled slightly, making her smile as well.

"Hi Hanna," he said. Sasha looked between the two of them before clearing her throat.

"Hanna Grey, meet Bruce Wayne. Bruce Wayne, meet Hanna Grey. Now let's move on," she said, smirking at Hanna's red face.

"Oh um, Bruce… this is Sasha Parker," Hanna said, introducing her friend. Bruce tore his eyes off of Hanna and looked at Sasha, who simply raised an eyebrow.

"Nice to meet you, Bruce Wayne." Sasha shook his hand and shot Hanna a look.

"Yes, I am aware. Would you like to join us?" she asked. Hanna glared but quickly smiled once Bruce looked her way.

"That would be lovely, thank you," he said, taking a seat between the two of them. They sat in a small awkward silence before Hanna decided to break it.

"So… how… um…" Sasha seemed to notice her discomfort and spoke for her.

"How have you been, I believe she is trying to ask," she said. Hanna shot her a look and ignored the one she received from Bruce.

"Fine, busy with the company, but fine. And you?" he asked, looking at Hanna. Hanna glanced at him and shrugged.

"Fine, I suppose…" there was a silence while Sasha crossed her arms and looked at the two of them.

"I'm fine too, thank you for asking," she said sarcastically. Bruce went to talk but was cut off by the waiter bringing them a new round of drinks. Hanna quickly downed the one she had in front of her before turning to the next.

"In a rush Hanna?" Bruce asked. Hanna glanced at him and her eyes met his, making her stomach clench for a brief moment.

"Everyone needs to let loose every now and then, I'm no different," she said. Sasha nodded and downed her own drink.

"Maybe you should follow in example, Bruce." Hanna scoffed and shook her head, the alcohol beginning to get to her.

"I'm not sure Bruce is able to let loose anymore. The last time he tried that he ended up freaking out and leaving me in the dust," she said softly, though Bruce still heard her.

"Hanna, I was going to-"

"-Just, all alone… on the couch. How rude," she finished.

"Yes, how rude. I think you should make it up to her by letting loose and finishing that drink. I have the waiter brining a new round every now and then and you should finish before he gets back," Sasha told him. Bruce paused, not used to the sudden change in attitude from Hanna, nor the abrasive personality from Sasha, and simply drank. Maybe they were right. Tonight was the night to let loose.

* * *

_"Shit, I think I'm lost," Hanna mumbled as she looked at her map. Her roommate sighed and looked at her own before practically throwing it behind her and stomping forward._

_"Fuck it, I don't care if this club is the hottest in town, I want a drink and I want it now!" Amanda said, her voice tense. Hanna grabbed her arm and pulled her back._

_"Scream it a little louder why don't you. We're only underage looking for a bar," she said, reminding her roommate of their age. Amanda scoffed and they continued walking._

_"Who cares, maybe we'll get lucky and find someone willing to show us the way," Amanda said, looking around. Hanna pressed her lips together but said nothing for a long moment. They continued to make their way own the street, only to stop when they saw a man reading the college newspaper._

_"This guy looks good enough," Amanda said. Hanna grabbed her arm and pulled her back, shooting her a look._

_"Amanda, you can't just go and ask the first guy you see questions like that. What if he's a mugger?" she asked. Amanda just raised an eyebrow and shook her head._

_"You Miss Grey, are too paranoid for your own good. This is not Gotham, yes it's still dangerous, but you need to let loose. You're in college, live a little!" Hanna rolled her eyes as she saw Amanda walk up and talk to the guy. Let loose… like that was going to happen._

* * *

It happened. She wasn't sure how or when, but it happened. Bruce finally let loose. He was laughing along with her and Sahsa as Sasha told him a story from college.

"Poor guy didn't know what hit him. The minute Nathan came in, his military uniform on and all, he was stunned. Oh, and then when Nathan kissed her I swear the guy left before we could blink. I think he pissed himself." Bruce laughed and Hanna smiled fondly at the memory.

"From what I remember he was a big guy," he mused.

"Not big, but toned. I remembered we had to get him to drag Hanna out of a bar, I mean literally drag, and he just grabbed her waist and hulled her out of there. She didn't stand a chance," Sasha informed him.

"Yes well… not like I stood much of a chance. The guy was three times bigger than me!" Hanna interjected. Sasha laughed and Bruce simply gazed at her for a long moment, his eyes were surprisingly warm and made Hanna slightly self-conscious.

"Do you miss him?" he asked. Sasha suddenly became silent and looked at her friend, who pursed her lips and looked at the table. After taking a deep breath she looked up and gave a small nod.

"Everyday…" she answered. Bruce was silent and took a sip of his drink, seeming to be in deep thought before turning back to her.

"Do you miss him more than you missed me?" The question shocked Hanna, and Sasha suddenly looked around the bar, trying to find some means of an escape. This conversation was too intimate for her. She blamed the alcohol.

"I… I don't know. I missed you, but Nathan came in and put together my heart when you left. When he left… you gave a sympathetic glance and ran after Rachel. It's hard to not miss him when no one is there to help me move on." The statement caused him to be silent as Sasha chugged the rest of her drink. God, this was awkward.

"Excuse me," a voice cut in. The group turned toward the man looking down at Sasha, smiling at her with lust written in his eyes.

"Yes?" she asked, raising a brown eyebrow.

"Care to dance?" he asked. Sasha scoffed and shook her head.

"No thank you, I'm sort of involved," she informed him. He looked upset but turned toward Hanna, who looked like she was ready for the night to be over.

"Well… care for a pity dance?" he asked. Hanna gave a small unladylike snort and looked up at him.

"For who? You or me?" He smiled and offered her his hand, causing her eyebrows to furrow as she tilted her head at him.

"Let's call it both and just enjoy each other." She leaned back and looked over him. Surprisingly he was only a couple of years younger than her, so at least she didn't feel too out of place. Not to mention she was far too drunk to care that she was obviously a second string pick. Besides, she doubted she was going to get far with anyone else, might as well go for it.

"What the hell, right?" she asked, placing her hand in his and letting him guide her away. Bruce just frowned and took another long sip of his drink. Sasha watched as he glared at the man dancing with her and scoffed.

"You're being a coward," she said. He turned to her and furrowed his eyebrows.

"What?"

"Look, I don't know what happened between you and Rachel, but it's obvious you really want something to happen with Hanna. Yet you're just going to sit back and watch as some guy just rub himself over her. I hope he doesn't take advantage of her," Sasha said, turning her head to the side and watched as he let his hands rest at her waist. Bruce saw the move as well and pressed his lips together before downing the rest of his drink and standing up. Sasha just raised an eyebrow and watched as he stalked over to the couple and broke them up. The reporter just chuckled and leaned back into her chair.

"I should become a matchmaker, I'm fantastic at this shit."

Across the room Hanna was suddenly shocked to find the body behind her removed, and even more shocked to see Bruce shooting him a nasty look.

"I'm having the next dance," he snapped. The man looked as if he were to argue, but Bruce quickly wrapped an arm around her waist, and the newcomer was quickly forgotten.

"I believe you broke up my dancing partner," she said. Her eyes were a bit glossy, and he could tell she was pretty drunk. He was himself as well.

"He wasn't worth your time anyway," he said quietly.

"Well thank you, father," she snapped. He frowned and pulled her closer to him.

"I only do it to protect you," he said. She sighed and turned around, wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling herself closer.

"You can't even protect me from yourself…" Bruce frowned and lowered his head so his forehead touched her own.

"I'm trying…" he whispered. She could smell the small amount of alcohol on his breath, and she frowned. Would he only be like this when drunk? Then again, he wasn't drunk that other night… was he?

"Bruce… we're not dancing," she said. His hazel eyes met her own blue and he pulled her closer.

"I don't want to dance." Hanna wanted to reply, but instead became distracted by his lips moving closer to her own. His warm alcohol coated lips brushed against hers before she pulled away.

"Don't do this if you're going to leave me," she said, her voice low so only he could hear it. Bruce raised his hand and brushed some of her hair away. If he was sober, he would've thought of several reasons why he should have just left and let her find another dance partner. However, seeing as he was pretty intoxicated, none of them came to mind. Instead he lowered his lips to her and let them press against her own, the alcohol as evident on her lips as his.

A small sigh escaped her throat as his strong arms encased her closer, and his lips moved against her own. Slowly she let her hand tangle into his short hair, which caused him to tighten his grip on her waist. Her heart was pounding as his tongue slipped through her slightly parted lips, and the fuzzy feeling the alcohol had given her had now slipped into overdrive. Instinctively she let her teeth lightly bite on his lower lip when his tongue retreated into his own mouth, and she was rewarded instantly with a groan from him. The bass was pounding and Hanna felt the need to press her hips closer to his, which she did, and in return elicited a groan from both of them.

"Hanna…" Bruce hissed. Hanna pulled away and her glossy blue eyes met his own hazel. She moved her hand to his cheek, her fingers caressing the small bit of stubble that had formed.

"Bruce…" she said quietly. Bruce felt his pulse quicken as she lightly bit her bottom lip. Before he could lean down and capture those pink lips, however, they were interrupted. A loud bang echoed through the club and people immediately began to run around. In an instant Bruce felt his buzz disappear and instantly rushed Hanna into the corner where they could not be seen. At the entrance of the club stood a man in a toga, with a large shotgun in his hand, a menacing smile on his face as he looked over the club.

"Everyone remain calm and I promise this will go quickly," he shouted. A few armored men entered the club and attempted to keep people on the dance floor, but some were fortunate enough to escape. Bruce looked around for an exit, but was disappointed to see the only one near the roof. Sure, he could reach it, but Hanna would not be so lucky.

Hanna, on the other hand, was trying to comprehend what was going on. One minute she was in a heated lip-lock with Bruce, and then the next she was being shoved into the corner while people were screaming and being huddled into the middle of the club. She felt he own alcoholic fog slowly lift as she realized that the club was now under attack. Instinctively she clung onto Bruce, who continued to try and hide her away from a few men making their way around the club.

"Hanna…" his voice made her break away from her eyes searching the room, to find his warm hazel looking down at her.

"Bruce, the club-" Bruce cut her off before she had a chance to continue.

"No time, Hanna, stay here and hide away from these people. Do you understand?" he said quietly. She furrowed her eyebrows as she looked up at him.

"I… yes, but where are you going?" she asked. Bruce pulled away from her and gently guided her further into the corner where she wouldn't be seen.

"I just need you to trust me, okay?" he said, his eyes pleading with her. She nodded and sank back into the corner.

"Bruce, Sasha-"

"-Stay down. No matter what. Don't make me have to explain to Danny that he lost his mother too," Bruce said, his tone harsher than intended. Hanna paled and immediately sunk into the corners. Bruce quickly broke away from her and made his way into the shadows across the club, where he knew a way up would be.

Hanna, on the other hand, pushed herself into corner, trying her hardest to stay hidden. If she weren't so frightened, or still slightly drunk, she would've asked where Bruce was going. Instead, she kept quiet and listened closely.

"Now that everyone is settled down, we can make introductions. I am Hades, your God of death. I am here on behalf of the Olympians, who are here to confiscate this club for our own use. You all just happen to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. First, we're going to need every piece of jewelry, cash, or valuable you have on you. After that, we'll see who will be let go, who will die, and who will be honored to join us here in out little joint. Now… let's start with the valuables. You, Rex, check around and make sure we're not missing anyone." Hanna felt her heart pounding as she heard fait cries of shock and pain from the group, and the hard thuds of the boots the criminals were wearing. She held her breath as she heard the thugs making their way near her, hoping they wouldn't find her.

"Why are you doing this?" a woman asked, panic coating her words. Hades laughed cruelly at her words, and Hanna wished she could've seen his face.

"Because I can," he said simply. Hanna held her breath as she saw one of Hades's thugs walk past her and suddenly stop. Hanna slowly sank lower to the ground and hugged her knees to her chest as tight as she could. The thug seemed to go to turn around before stopping and moving forward again. When he was a decent distance away she finally let out a breath she didn't realize she was holding.

"Now, I think it's time we sort out who is staying and who is going." The way he spoke was so crude that Hanna couldn't resist slowly moving out of her corner to see the man taking over the club and ruining several people's lives. The club was still dark, but she could make him out clear as day. He wore an old fashioned greek toga, though it was black, and it hung off one shoulder, showing his quite toned chest. His dark hair was slicked back in a style that reminded her of a greaser even from her spot in the corner she could see how his eyes were practically black. His smile was a cruel as his voice, and when his eyes flickered over in her direction, she felt a shiver make it's way through her.

"Rex, you miss one, you dumb ass," Hades said. Hanna felt frozen to the ground as she realized he was speaking about her, and heard herself give out a high pitched squeal as the burly though tugged her up by her shirt. Rex immediately tried to direct her toward the ground, but it was then Hanna began to fight back. She stomped on his foot as hard as she could, all while elbowing him in the gut. Rex leaned forward and she made a rush forward, only to be caught by Hades himself, and have the butt of his gun swipe across her cheek. She heard the harsh thud before she felt it, and as the pain began to set in, she felt the taste of copper in her mouth. A small groan escaped her slightly bruised lips before she raised her eyes to meet her attacker's black orbs. Hades looked down at her cruelly, and gripped her chin. He kept his eyes trained on hers and smiled.

"Such brashness is unsuitable for such a sweet little thing. However, it is a quality my boss likes. This one we keep," he said. Hanna felt her heart begin to pound as thoughts of not returning home to her son filled her mind, she instantly began to feel tears in her eyes.

"No, please. I have a son. Just let me go, please," she begged. Hades laughed and shoved her at Rex, who shoved her in a chair and pointed a gun at her.

"Alright, the people we keep will be thrown over there. The ones we let go will line up over there to receive a bullet in their knee cap. Who wants to stay?" the group was silent before the sound of shattering glass interrupted them, causing the group to look up. Sure enough, the masked vigilante glided down to the ground, taking out four thugs with him. Hades suddenly turned to make a run for it, while the other thugs moved to try and fight the Batman. Rex, the man with his gun trained on Hanna, took a step forward and began to shoot. Hanna saw the opportunity to escape, and grabbed a bottle. She stood up quickly and noticed the burly man had his weapon trained on the Batman, who was fighting several men off at once. She quickly brought the glass bottle down at hard as she could against his head, but only succeeded in distracting him. Instead, he turned around and glared down at her. Instantly, his hand swept across her face, causing her to cry out in pain once more and fall to the ground. Faintly, she heard the sound of a click and knew he was raising his gun toward her, ready to shoot.

"Hanna!" a gun shot went off, causing her to flinch, yet after a minute she registered no pain. She stood up and turned toward the thug, only to see he was now on the ground knocked out, with the Batman standing behind him. She let out a breath that she didn't know she had been holding and felt tears come to her eyes.

"Run," the vigilante said, his coarse voice causing a shiver to run through her body. Her blue eyes met his warm hazel, and her heart began to pound. She took a step back before she felt someone grab her arm.

"Hanna, we need to run!" Hanna turned around and was shocked to see Sasha standing behind her. She turned back to the masked man, only to find he was across the room beating up some of the men who had attacked her.

"Hanna!" she suddenly found her legs moving on their own accord as she ran out of the club and toward Sasha's car. Sasha quickly unlocked the door and they both dove into the small car. Both their chests were heaving as Sasha quickly drove away from the club. Hanna closed her eyes and leaned back against the seat, trying to comprehend what had just happened.

"This town is seriously fucked up. We should have gotten out of here when we got the chance," Sasha said. Hanna sighed and wiped away tears streaming down her cheeks.

"Sasha, did you see Bruce?" she asked. Sasha shook her head.

"No, I saw him dancing with you, then that fucking psycho appeared out of no where. Did you lose him?" she asked. Hanna ran a hand through her hair and shook her head.

"I don't know what happened. I was with him… then he just… disappeared," she said softly. Sasha sighed and continued to drive as far away from the club as possible.

"Call him, maybe he just got separated," she said. Hanna nodded and went to reach in her pocket for her phone, only to realize it was no longer on her.

"I must have dropped it… damnit…" Hanna said, placing her head in her hands.

"We need to calm down… I'm a reporter, this isn't the first time I've been in this sort of situation," Sasha said. Hanna closed her eyes and tried to calm her breathing, but was failing.

"Sasha… maybe we should go to a doctor… or… something," Hanna said, her hands shaking slightly. Sasha nodded and took a deep breath.

"Right."

* * *

_Hanna chuckled as she looked at her group of friends as they sat in their favorite coffee shop, all of them discussing the latest lecture._

_"I swear, Professor Laurence is losing his mind. Everything is a government conspiracy with him. Next thing you know he'll tell us that we won't be able to drink tap water," Jenna, a mutual friend through Amanda, said. Lucas, Jenna's boyfriend, laughed and took a sip of his coffee._

_"No shit, I swear, he spends to much time talking about how our government is screwing us over we don't even have time to actually learn about the government," Lucas said. Amanda shrugged and wrote a few things down on her notepad._

_"I don't know, he can't be worse than Doctor Kepler's lecture on the mind of a criminal. She's just about as paranoid," Amanda said._

_"She probably has her whole house boarded up just in case," Jordan said. Hanna frowned and began doodling on her notebook._

_"I don't know, I found her lecture interesting," she said shyly. She glanced over at her latest rose addition from her not-so-secret-admirer. She heard Paul, Jordan's friend, snort at her statement._

_"Coming from the Gotham resident, that's not surprising," he said. Hanna frowned and stopped doodling._

_"What's that supposed to mean?" she asked. The group became silent as Paul held his ground and Hanna glared at him._

_"I'm just saying that coming from you, a girl who was raised in the place where criminals are practically bred, it's not surprising you enjoyed her lecture. You probably have a friend or two who was mugged or something," he said jokingly. Amanda sighed and Hanna clenched her fists. She immediately grabbed her books and shoved them in her bag. Paul looked at her confused as she stood up and glared at him._

_"As a matter of fact, my best friend's parents were killed in front of him when he was eight, and my brother is a cop who has to deal with that bullshit on a daily bases. I'm not stupid enough to think that Gotham is a paradise, but it is my home. And you have no right to joke about it until you've lived in it," Hanna said, her tone harsh. Paul frowned and went to stand up, but Hanna simply threw her cold latte at him, causing him to sputter and sit back down. Amanda looked up at her roommate and frowned._

_"Are you going to be okay?" she asked. Hanna nodded as she left the coffee shot. She was going to be just fine._

* * *

"I'm going to be fine, Sahsa, are you going to be okay?" Hanna asked as her friend stood at her doorway. After a lengthy trip to the emergency room, Hanna was finally back at home. They kept her for a couple hours, enough to give her some drugs o calm her down and take care of a small cut on her cheek, and now she was finally home and ready to sleep. Sasha seemed reluctant to leave her alone, but Hanna knew she wanted to go home to her photographer and cuddle with him till the memories of the night just faded away.

"I'll be alright. I just… I hate leaving you alone like this. You promise you'll call me in the morning?" she asked. Hanna nodded and hugged her friend.

"Right after I call Bruce, I'll call you," she said softly. When she was in the ER, she phoned Bruce, only to get Alfred, who informed her that Bruce made it home after he called the cops and tried to find her. When he saw her leaving with Sasha he went home. Hanna found it a little odd that Bruce would just leave, or even that he saw her leave with Sasha since she didn't see him on her way out, but she chalked it up to her adrenaline running and assumed she just missed him. Sasha pulled away and smiled warmly at her friend.

"I'll talk to you tomorrow. Call me if you need anything, okay?" Sasha asked, her face still full of worry. Hanna nodded and waved as her friend turned down the hallway and made her way home. Quickly, she closed the door and locked it, pausing to make sure she had the deadbolt on there as well. After a minute she sighed and leaned against her door, letting her mind run free. She could still remember the way her heart pounded through her chest as the thug dragged her over to the man who named himself Hades, while his black hateful eyes enveloped her. She was sure it was the end, so sure that she would never make it out of there. She would never see her son again, her mother, Bruce.

Bruce. Her eyes flew open as she took a few steps from the door and made her way to her room to change. Her mind drifted back to her lifelong friend and felt a frown on her lips increase. Again she had found herself entrapped in his arms and lips, yet nothing came of it, except him leaving her once more. In the back of her mind, she knew that if Nathan ever did that to her when they started dating, she would have left him without a second though. However, she knew that if Bruce came back to her, telling her that he wanted more than friendship, she would give herself to him. Not even giving it a second glance. She wasn't quite sure if that made her pathetic or not.

A cold breeze flittered around her as she realized she had changed into her tank-top and pajama bottoms. Rubbing her arms to cause some friction, she surveyed her room and realized that she had not left her windows open. Her eyebrows furrowed as she made her way into the living room, trying to figure out where the sudden breeze had come from. Her bare feet padded across the floors or her apartment as she rounded the corner and froze. In the darkness of her apartment she could make out his outline. The tall sturdy stature, the menacing cowl, and the flowing cape were all too familiar to her. She had been in a similar situation before, yet, now she felt as if he was here for more than a chat.

"You…" she said softly. The caped man stood still, not moving from her window, not saying anything, it was unnerving. The cool summer air drifted through her apartment once more, and it seemed to suddenly jolt her limbs to move. Slowly she moved till she was in front of him, her body inches away from his armor covered body. Even then, her stood still, his eyes shadowed by the night, while the rest of his face was illuminated by the moon. Hanna took a small breath before lifting her hand to his upper arm, which was covered by thick layers of armor.

"You saved me… again," she said, her voice quiet and her eyes glued to his chest. She secretly wondered if his actual physique was similar to the outline of his suit. She felt him shift slightly, but he didn't move toward her. He didn't move away from her either.

"You seem to get yourself in tight situations," his rough voice replied. She smiled slightly as she let her hand trace up his arm and to his broad shoulder. In the back of her mind, she wondered if she was dreaming. It would make more sense. Why would Batman be in her living room- for a second time- if this were real? Better yet, why would she suddenly feel the need to be so close to him if it were not a dream. Sure, she might have been able to chalk it up next to her just having some sort of damsel in distress syndrome. She felt her hand brush against the skin of his jaw, and wondered why he had yet to move away. After a moment she looked up, and she met what she thought were his eyes.

"Saved so many times, and I have yet to see the eyes of my hero…" she said. Gently she took a step back and tried to pull him forward. She felt his resistance at first, but after a gentle tug, he finally moved forward. The moon lit up his whole face, and her blue eyes met the vigilante's warm hazel. In the pit of her stomach she knew they were familiar, but her brain refused to cooperate as her limbs moved her forward. Her hand continued to trace over his jaw, surprised to feel the stubble. She chuckled to herself and didn't fail to notice the questioning look in his eyes.

"All this time," she started, "everyone talked about you like you were some sort of superhuman, but…" she trailed off and her eyes met his own as she noticed how close they were. Her breath was a bit haggard, and she noticed the Dark Knight was having a bit of trouble keeping his composure.

"Hanna…" he said, his rough voice causing a shiver to cascade through her body.

"But, you're still human," she said, finishing her previous statement. A gloved hand reached up and pushed some of her hair out of her face. Hanna felt his warm breath on her lips and she closed her eyes. His hand tangled into her hair, as his lips brushed ever so slightly over her own. Her heart was pounding and the familiar feeling in her stomach started to catch up with her brain. She felt the caped crusader press something into her hand near his hip and a sudden prick in her neck. She let out a hiss of pain and attempted to pull away, but stopped when she suddenly felt drowsy. The Batman pulled away and lowered her onto her couch, giving her a chance to see his eyes once more.

"Goodnight, Hanna…" his voice was the last thing she heard before everything went black.

* * *

_"Hanna, come on, you can't tell me you're tired," a low voice whispered in her ear. She felt his arms wrap around her middle and pull her close, causing a smile to erupt from her lips. She turned around and her eyes met his brown, causing her to pause for half a second. Her dreams had been plagued by Bruce, once again, and she couldn't stop the sinking feeling in her stomach as she realized this man was not him. Nathan smiled and kissed her nose._

_"I am tired. I've been studying all week," Hanna said, closing her eyes and snuggling closer to her boyfriend. Nathan pulled her closer and sighed._

_"And now you'll be leaving me for a week, how can you want to sleep in a time like this?" he asked. She chuckled and looked up at him._

_"You'll be with me on Wednesday, don't be so dramatic," she said, hitting his shoulder softly. Nathan frowned and moved back a little._

_"Sure, but you'll be with all your Gotham friends and I'll be with my Gotham friends-"_

_"-Wait, you have friends other than me?" she asked. Nathan smirked and began tickling her sides, making her squirm around her small bed until he was on top of her. Hanna chuckled and she let her hand caress his cheek. He leaned down and kissed her jaw before sighing and looking down at her._

_"You know what I'm saying. You'll be off running around with Rachel and Bruce and I'll be with my guys and I won't see you. I think we should make the most of it," he said. Hanna rolled her eyes and shook her head._

_"Silly Nathan, don't you know I can't go too long without seeing my soldier in action," she whispered. Nathan chuckled and pulled her body against his._

_"Why do I have a feeling you're not talking about my gun?" he whispered. Hanna's face turned red but she smirked in response._

_"Well… maybe not the one in your locker," she said. Nathan laughed and kissed her through his smile._

_"That's why you're my girl," he said in reply. Despite the moment, Hanna couldn't help letting her mind wander back to a now missing Bruce, and remembering he never said that about her. She was always his friend. Never his girl._

* * *

**_Well, hello all! It's been less than two years, so I think we're making progress. I just wanted to get this short chapter out before I go to work. Blah, work. I think I'd rather go to an 8:30 class then sit through the torture known as my job. Oh well._**

**_I'm going to try and push myself to get chapters done, I really want to finish this so I can focus on other stuff. I'm trying this new philosophy of only working on one project at a time. It's been difficult with my short attention span, but I'm going to try._**

**_I'm also debating if I want to go off The Dark Knight Rises. I have an idea from what I saw, but I have to see the movie first. No worries, I got midnight release tickets. I tried to get IMAX 3D, but they sold out in minutes. Lame. _**

**_Anyway, hopefully next chapter will be sooner. Once I get myself to actually sit down and write it. I've been slightly distracted with work, school, somewhat of a social life, and video games. Mostly Mass Effect 3. It's addicting. Who else is excited for Assassin's Creed III? ME? Oh well… till next time kidlins!_**


	15. Chapter 15

_**Disclaimer: I do not own Batman or anything related to Batman. Anything that resembles the comic or the movie written by Christopher Nolan is not mine and I make no money from this. I do own any OC's and the plot-line not seen in the movies or the comics. Please do not steal. Thank you.**_

* * *

Light poured into her living room as she felt the soreness in her limbs come to her. Her eyes fluttered open as she took in the sight of her living room. She briefly saw the city wind blow her curtains, and she could faintly pick up the scent of gas and the smell of homemade waffles she knew her neighbor had made. Lifting herself up into a sitting position, she stretched her back and immediately felt a pain in her neck and cheek. She knew why the sudden pain in her cheek erupted, the pain in her neck, however, was new.

Hanna stood up and cracked her back, before jumping slightly when she felt something lightly hit her foot. Looking down, she could see the small silver phone as clear as day. Picking it up, she attempted to remember when she got her phone back. As far as she knew, she had left it at the club and it was gone forever. Shivering at the memory, she flipped it open and noticed that someone had turned it off. Certainly not her, she never turned her phone off. Old habit from living with a soldier on duty, you never knew when you were going to get _that_ call, or that knock on the door.

A sudden knock broke her out of her thoughts, and she almost laughed at the irony of it. Slowly she walked to the door and peeked out the peephole. Her breath caught in her throat as she saw none other than Bruce standing at her apartment door. At once she threw her door opened and practically threw herself in his arms, taking in his familiar scent and warmth.

"Bruce, I was so worried," she said, her voice cracking slightly. She felt him hold her tighter and tears sprang to her eyes.

"I was going to come over, but I passed out as soon as I got to my car. I'm sorry, are you alright?" he asked, pulling away and looking down at her. She nodded and placed a hand on her cheek.

"Are you alright? You just disappeared. Where did you go? Bruce, you scared me, I wasn't sure what happened, I just…" she trailed off as her leaned forward and kissed her forehead. Causing her to calm down just a bit.

"I'm fine, I went to go see if I could find help. If I would have known that they would've found you I wouldn't have left you alone," he said softly. Hanna furrowed her eyebrows and took a step back, looking up at him.

"Wait, how did you know they found me if you weren't there?" she asked. Even if he was, why didn't he try and help her? She noticed that Bruce paled for a brief moment before placing a hand on her shoulder and giving her a reassuring look.

"I heard from one of the clubbers that some poor woman with dark hair had been taken. When I saw you run to Sasha's car, I noticed the bruise on your cheek and assumed it was you. I tried to get back to my car and follow you, but I passed out. If it weren't for me calling Alfred before passing out I'd probably still be there," he said. Hanna nodded and let Bruce pull her close again. His chin rested atop of her head and his strong arms once again pulled her to him. She wanted to ask him what happened, she honestly didn't believe his story, but couldn't bring herself to. Questions about their kiss were also bubbling up, but her lips refused to utter them. Was this really the time?

"Bruce, I was so scared. I was so worried I'd never see Danny, or you again. I haven't felt that way since," _Harvey shot me_. She didn't utter the last words, as far as she knew everyone was still in belief that Harvey was a hero. Bruce pulled away and placed a hand on her cheek.

"I know, you've been through a lot. Hopefully you got a decent nights rest," he said, though something in his tone made her think that he wasn't hoping, he knew. Instead of questioning it, she nodded and finally broke free of him and moved so he could actually walk in, then shut the door. Bruce surveyed the living room, his eyes focusing on the living room window for a moment longer than necessary. She cleared her throat and ran a hand through her hair.

"Um… do you want some coffee? I might have some breakfast stuff around here," she said awkwardly. Bruce turned away from the window and nodded.

"Coffee would be great, thanks," he said. She nodded and made her way in the kitchen, realizing she was still in her pajamas and most likely looked hideous. She ignored that thought as she grabbed her coffee pot and began to rinse it out. As she waited for the water to fill the pot, she tried to remember if she saw Bruce when she ran out of the club, but couldn't place him. Instead, she saw the black, cold, menacing, eyes of Hades. Her breath hitched as she felt the pot fall from her hands and slam into the sink, making her jump and take a step back. The pounding of her heart echoed through her ears as she tried to calm herself down. She wasn't in that club, she was at home. Safe and sound. No one was going to hurt her.

"Hanna?" Bruce asked, placing a warm hand on her shoulder. She jumped and spun around, her frightened blue eyes seeking his warm hazel. Bruce looked down, noticing her hands were shaking and took them in his own.

"Bruce, I'm sorry… I just… I keep seeing him and…" she said, trailing off. Bruce sighed and lifted a hand to her cheek, noticing the color had drained from her face.

"Hanna, he's gone. Batman took care of him. He's not going to hurt you," he said softly. She furrowed her eyebrows at him as he moved closer to him.

"How do you know the Batman took care of him, you weren't…" she stopped her sentence as he leaned down and captured her lips with his, causing her already pounding heart to jump. His hand on her cheek rested at the back of her head and began to let his fingers tangle in her hair. He gently pulled away and she kept her eyes trained on his lips. Her hands were no longer shaking as she gripped his shirt, and Bruce let his hand drop from his neck.

"Maybe you should stay with someone for a while. This is a bad part of town, you might feel safer with someone. Like, Sasha, or your mother," he said. Hanna shook her head.

"I can't… Sasha is with her boyfriend or… boy toy, and my mother is in Atlantic city. I'm alone…" she said quietly in reply. Bruce sighed and pulled her toward him, her head resting against his strong chest. He knew she probably would be fine by herself. But he didn't want to leave her alone. The last time he left someone he truly cared about alone at a time like this, they ended up being blown up in a fire. Hanna was no Rachel, but he would be a fool to deny that recently he had been looking forward to seeing her, no matter the situation.

"Maybe you should stay with me… in the penthouse," he said. Hanna pulled away instantly and looked at him shocked. She hadn't spent the night in the same house with Bruce since they were teens. Here he was, however, suggesting it like it was no big deal. Did he really not realize how much she cared for him?

"I… I'm not sure, Bruce… I mean… we-"

"Hanna, I would rather have you somewhere safe than here where you have to make sure you're windows and doors are locked constantly. I'm sure Alfred would love to see you again too," he said confidently. Inside, however, he was anything but. Yes, he wanted her to be safe, but after last night, he wasn't sure where they stood. Hanna seemed to be in similar turmoil, and neither of them seemed willing to step forward to talk about what was going on between them. Yet, the more Hanna thought about it, the better the idea was looking. Being alone was the last thing she wanted to be right now, and being with Bruce seemed far more appealing than anything else.

"Well… I'll need to grab a few things. I could head over before dinner after I just clean a few things," she said. Bruce nodded and cleared his throat. He half expected her to say no. So her sudden agreement was shocking.

"Right… well, will you be alright if I run over and clean up myself. I was not actually expecting you to actually come over and stay for a few days," he said. She nodded and walked around him to grab her fallen coffee pot.

"I… um… I'll call when I'm heading over," she said. They stood awkwardly, her back facing him before she heard him shuffle his feat.

"Right, just call and I'll send Alfred over to pick you up," he said. Hanna sighed and placed the pot back in it's holder.

"Bruce, I am perfectly-" she was cut off by his hand on her shoulder, causing her to jump and turn around, coming face to face with him once more.

"Hanna, just call," he said. This time, she was the one to clear her throat and nod.

"Okay… I'll call you."

* * *

_"Nathan, I swear I'll be fine," Hanna said. Nathan sighed and grabbed her hand and pulled her down the street with him._

_"I just hate going away and leaving you like this. You're going to be my wife, I don't want to leave you by yourself in Gotham," he said softly. She gave his hand a squeeze and looked around the city._

_"It's not that bad," she said. Nathan scoffed as they stopped in front of a bridal store. Hanna knew she should go in and look at a few flowers or whatever for their wedding, but she wasn't able to pull herself away from her fiancé._

_"It's pretty bad, Hanna. Hell, even as kids we knew this place was shit. I can't believe you're going to come back here after you graduate," he said sourly. Hanna let go of his hand to wrap an arm around his waist, while he draped an arm around her shoulder. The way they were situated, they almost looked as if they were wearing the tux and gown in the display mirror._

_"__**We're**__ coming back. Come on Nathan, our whole family is here. How can we just up and move away from our families?" she asked._

_"I know… but I don't feel right leaving you alone when I'm away. Someone should look after you," he said, kissing her forehead. She chuckled and urged him to continue walking down the street._

_"I'm sure I'll find someone when you're not around. Is it still a mistress if a woman has one?" she asked. Nathan's deep laughed echoed through the street as he turned her around and entrapped her in his arms. Hanna also giggled as he leaned down and pressed his forehead against hers._

_"I love you, you crazy woman," he said. She leaned up and her lips met his before pulling away and smile._

_"I love you too, you overbearing, neurotic, worrying-" she was suddenly cut off by him picking her up and throwing her over his shoulder._

_"I think it's time to get you home, so I can ravish you before you continue to talk and make me second guess marrying you," he said, walking down the street._

_"Oh, I forgot to mention caveman. But hey, those workout are making your butt look fantastic," she said giggling. She felt Nathan chuckle as he continued to walk down the street, getting a few strange looks from other citizens._

_"Yup, definitely going to have to rethink this marriage thing."_

_"I love you, caveman," Hanna said._

_"I love you too, crazy woman."_

* * *

Hanna sat in the back seat of Alfred's car as they began the trip to Bruce's luxury penthouse. She had only been there once, but she remembered it was a pain to get to, and this time was no different. What was different was the circumstances she found herself for going to his house, and she wasn't wearing that god awful dress.

"I'm glad you will be joining us, Miss Hanna. It has been some time since I have seen you about Wayne Manor… or the penthouse," Alfred said, looking at her through his rear-view mirror. Hanna smiled warmly at the butler and met his eyes through the mirror.

"It's good to be about. It's been a while since I've tasted your cooking. From what I remember, it was superb," she said, shooting a wink his way. Alfred smiled and continued on his drive down to the penthouse. In truth, he missed having Hanna around. Though he loved Rachel, Hanna was always the kinder of the three. She was there unconditionally for Bruce, no matter what. In all honesty, she probably should have told him to leave her alone years ago, but she still stuck by him. So much so, that if he wasn't mistaken, something a bit more than friendship was brewing under the surface.

"Well, I'm glad someone will eat it. Master Wayne seems content on letting my food rot on his desk," he said. Hanna frowned and shook her head.

"What a shame. If I had someone to cook for me it would definitely not go to waste," she said. Alfred chuckled, knowing she was buttering him up. She did it all the time as a child, it was apparently no different now that she was older.

"Well I'll be sure to make your favorite," he said. Hanna chuckled and looked out the window once more. She remembered many times in her childhood where Alfred had picked her and Rachel up so they could spend the weekend at Wayne Manor. Now, as she sat alone in the car, she realized how much had changed, while still staying the same. She felt Alfred come to a stop and glanced outside, seeing the tall tower that housed Wayne Penthouse. Alfred stepped out of the car and slowly made his way over, frowning when she opened her own door. Hanna noticed and placed a hand on his arm.

"Alfred, I can open a car door," she said, smiling softly at the elder man.

"No reason a young lady can't be treated as such. Let me do my damn job," he said, though the jest was obvious in his voice. Hanna chuckled and grabbed her small suitcase, frowning when the elder man took that as well.

"I know Bruce might have you-" Hanna didn't get to finish her sentence as Alfred shot her a look.

"Miss Hanna, I have one job to do and it is to make sure Master Wayne and his guests are taken care of, no matter how small the task is. So how about you let me do my job, and I can feel content with my life," he said. Again, Hanna heard the jest in his voice, but decided not to comment on it. Alfred pulled the door open for her and she smiled and walked in, admiring the beautiful marble lobby and expensive pieces of artwork. She heard her short heels making small clicks on the floor, and was surprised that no one else was walking around the place.

"Where are the other residents?" she asked. Alfred smiled and gestured to the elevator.

"Master Wayne has bought the entire building until Wayne Manor is finished," he said, stepping into the elevator behind her and pressing a button. Hanna raised her eyebrows and looked at him.

"The whole building? What does he need the whole building for?" she asked.

"Master Wayne has become a rather private person, he preferred the solace of his own building. Once he returns to Wayne Manor, he'll rent out the remaining apartments to anyone willing to buy," Alfred said, trying his best to explain Bruce's behavior. Hanna nodded and looked around in awe as the doors opened to the penthouse and she finally got a decent glance at it.

"Let me know when, I want to call dibs on this place," she said jokingly.

"You like it?" a new voice said. Hanna glanced over and saw Bruce walking into the living room. Hanna nodded and glanced around. The last time she was there was for his fundraiser for Harvey Dent. There had been no couches, chairs, or coffee tables. There had been no homey touch. Then again, there wasn't much of one now. The place reeked of high class home and garden, yet failed to bring the warmth her mothers living room held. Then again, Bruce was living in a bachelor pad. She supposed there wasn't much point to spruce up your home if only you and your butler lived there. Still, she wished there was a vase with flowers in it or something. It was well coordinated, and well furnished, but felt cold all the same.

"Hanna," Bruce said, pulling her out of her thoughts.

"It's nice… but needs a woman's touch," she said, walking toward the window.

"That's exactly what I've been saying," Alfred said, looking at Bruce. Bruce caught the undertone of his meaning, but said nothing and played along.

"Well, why don't you go out and get yourself a woman, Alfred. I'm sure she'd love a chance to decorate the place," he said. Alfred knew immediately he was telling him to keep his mouth closed, which he obliged, mostly.

"Perhaps I shall. Miss Hanna, you wouldn't happen to have an elder lady friend who would be interested, would you?" Alfred asked. Hanna giggled and turned around toward the men.

"Only my mother, though I believe she always had a soft spot for your accent," Hanna said, teasing the elder gentleman. Alfred smiled and gave a small nod.

"Well, I should give her a call then. Excuse me," Alfred said, taking his leave and forcing the two of them to be alone. Bruce watched his butler leave before turning to the woman in front of him, who had turned back to the skyline of Gotham. He slowly made his way over to her, standing next to her and taking in the scene as well. They stood in silence for a moment before Hanna spoke.

"Can you believe we were standing in this exact spot a little more than a year ago?" she asked. Bruce looked at her, remembering that night vividly. Back when Rachel was alive, and the Joker was just making his mark. He nodded and lifted his hand to brush come of her hair out of the way.

"You were wearing that purple dress and were talking to Dougherty most of the night," he said. Hanna blushed at the contact and turned toward him.

"I can't believe you remember that dress," she said. Bruce just smiled and looked down at her, his eyes tracing over her face. Hanna felt her heart stutter and looked over into the living room.

"Well, your place is far bigger than mine. We should have pizza night at your house more often," she said, walking toward the middle of the large room. Bruce followed slowly behind, his gaze watching her hips sway slightly.

"When Wayne Manor is back up, we'll just go there and sit under our blanket forts," he said jokingly. Hanna laughed and leaned against the back of his couch, shaking her head as she did.

"Man, we must've been… what, nine? Eight?" she asked. Bruce stood close and looked like he was thinking it over.

"Seven, I think. We moved onto running around the manor at eight, and onto horror movies by nine," he said. She nodded, thinking back fondly of her memories.

"Or the fires where we would set marshmallows on fire," she said, adding to the rush of childhood memories resurfacing.

"I don't know how you and Rachel managed to set the damn rug on fire," he said softly. She blushed and ran a hand through her hair.

"We were aiming for your stupid stuffed dog," she said, the blush confirming her sudden confession. Bruce frowned and crossed his arms.

"My mother gave me that," he said.

"Well we didn't know that they would…" Hanna suddenly trailed off, realizing what she was about to say. Bruce knew what she was going to say, but couldn't bring himself to be upset. It was the truth. None of them knew that in the few short months after the girls had set the rug on fire, his parents would be gunned down.

"It's okay, Hanna…" he said. She looked up, her eyes sad as she pushed herself away from the couch and grabbed his hand.

"I'm sorry. I know you miss them still," she said. Bruce was silent as he looked down at her, watching her reaction to him moving forward. He raised his hand to trace her cheek before meeting her eyes and smiling ever so softly.

"I'm really glad you agreed to stay here for a bit," he said. She smiled and let her eyes drop to his lips.

"Well… I'd be lying if I said I didn't have some incentive," she said admittedly. Bruce smiled and leaned down, his lips brushing over hers ever so slightly. Before she could lean back into the kiss, someone cleared their throat, causing both of them to break away and looked toward Alfred. The elder man stood in front of them, smiling at them before looking toward Bruce.

"Master Bruce, perhaps Miss Hanna would like a chance to see the room she will be staying in," he said. Bruce gave a small nod and turned toward her.

"I'll show you to the guest room," he said. Hanna nodded and adjusted her shirt, trying to hide her blushing face from Alfred.

"That would be great, thank you," she said quietly. Bruce nodded and gestured for her to follow him.

"Master Wayne, before you leave, is there a specific dish you wish me to make for dinner?" Alfred asked. Bruce looked to Hanna and smiled before turning toward the Englishman.

"Make her favorite, if you would," he said. Hanna blushed ever so slightly and turned toward Alfred.

"You really don't-" Bruce cut her off.

"I'll have the same, thank you Alfred," Bruce said. Alfred nodded and left the two alone once again. Hanna turned toward Bruce and pouted slightly.

"Bruce, honestly, I really don't need to be catered. I wouldn't mind cooking for you guys," she said.

"No, you're our guest, why would I have you cook?" he asked, smiling down at her. She rolled her eyes and continued to follow him down the hall, taking note, once again, of his lack of homey touches. He stopped not far from what she guessed was the master bedroom and opened a black door, gesturing for her to make her way inside. Hanna took a couple steps in before stopping to admire the place where she was expected to make a new home. The king size bed was covered in sheets far nicer than anything she could scrounge up at home, and they were accompanied by furniture that she was sure came straight out of a home and garden catalog. For a brief second, she was saddened by that fact that she was probably the only one who was going to use this room, and probably the last one too. The light filtered into the room and she was met with another glorious sight of Gotham. The perks of the rich and famous, to have such beautiful views like this in rooms they didn't even use.

"This is okay, right? If you want you can have the master bedroom," he said. Hanna turned toward him and raised an eyebrow.

"Okay? I'm pretty sure the closet would be bigger than my room at home," she said, walking to a separate door and opening it up, to see the walk in closet. "Yup, not even close," she said. Bruce smiled and took a few steps into the room.

"Well, I need to do some work, feel free to roam around the penthouse, dinner will be ready at seven, sound good?" he asked. She nodded and looked over at the bed, realizing that a nap sounded like a gift from heaven right about now.

"I'll be at dinner. Don't work too hard," she said, smiling softly. Bruce chuckled ruffled her hair, something he hadn't done since they were kids.

"I never do," he said. Hanna sighed and watched as he left the room and left her alone in her current quarters. Gently she pulled her hair out of her bun and sat on the bed, only to find out it was memory foam.

"Oh, I need one of these," she said, falling back and letting the plush sheets and pillows engulf her as she drifted off to sleep.

* * *

_"I think we should paint this blue," she said, sitting on the floor with her plate. Nathan sat down next to her and raised an eyebrow, looking around the small living room. _

_"Blue? What about like… a light brown?" he asked. Hanna took a sip of her wine and looked at him as if he were crazy._

_"My uncle had a brown living room, he also put all the animals he shot on the wall. I have bad memories from brown living rooms," she said. Nathan rolled his eyes and took a bite of his pizza before sighing and looking around._

_"Hell, I don't know, Hanna. The only color scheme I know of is camouflage," he said in confession. Hanna chuckled and leaned against him, looking over the blank slate that was their newest apartment._

_"Well, we have time to decide. You're still on leave for a couple months, right?" she asked. He nodded and kissed the top of her head._

_"Of course, though, we still have a lot of wedding planning to do," he said. She groaned and took another long sip of her wine._

_"Thanks for reminding me. I still have to pick those damn flowers," she said softly. Nathan chuckled and put his plate down, draping an arm around his fiancée._

_"That's what you have the maid of honor for," he said. She laughed and looked up, her eyes meeting his._

_"Yes, well my soon-to-be husband is supposed to lend a hand as well," she said. Nathan chuckled and leaned down to capture her lips with his._

_"I know just the thing I can do to help," he said, leaning toward her, causing her to lean toward the floor until her back hit the ground. Hanna giggled as his lips began to assault her neck._

_"Nathan, how is this helping me?" she asked, a smile on her lips._

_"I'm relieving some stress," he said, his lips still peppering kisses on her neck._

_"Always one thing on your mind, soldier," she said, giggling once more._

_"Well, I can't help it if you've always got me-"_

_"-No more cliché lines, Nathan. I already said yes to marrying you," she said, pulling his head up to press her lips against his._

_"I love you, Miss Grey," he said, his brown eyes meeting her blue. Hanna smiled and let her hand caress his cheek._

_"I love you too, Mister Sanders."_

* * *

When Hanna finally woke from her nap, it was dark out and the clock red 7:12 pm. She groaned and sat up, her body not wanting to leave the warmth of the bed and ran a hand through her now tangled hair. Faintly, she could smell the aroma of pasta sauce, and she was reminded that Alfred was supposed to make dinner for her. Quickly, she got out of bed and looked in the mirror, trying to straighten herself out. After a few seconds of untangling her hair and smoothing over her make-up, she finally made her way outside the guestroom and toward what she remembered as the living room. She could barely make out the sound of two people talking, and as she glanced over, she saw what looked to be a dinning room with an entrance to what she assumed to be the kitchen. Quietly, she made her way over, noting that the closer she got the better she could hear their conversation.

"Master Wayne, I know how you feel about the whole situation, but perhaps it wouldn't be such a bad idea to let her know-"

"-Alfred, the last thing she needs is to be brought into this. I couldn't keep Rachel safe, I'm not going to put her in danger," she heard Bruce say. Hanna frowned and debated on waiting around and listening more to the conversation, but when she heard no rebuttal from the butler, she slowly made her way in.

"Miss Hanna, it seems that a nice nap did you some good," he said. Hanna smiled and sat down on the small stool at the kitchen island they had.

"Are you saying I looked bad before the nap, Alfred?" Hanna asked, a smile playing on her lips.

Bruce chuckled and placed a comforting hand on her arm right above her wrist. "You looked fine, he's just teasing you," he said reassuringly. Hanna chuckled and placed her free hand on his for a moment before pulling away and grabbing the wine glass Alfred presented to her.

"So, what have you prepared tonight?" she asked, taking a sip of the wine.

"Chicken Parmesan with spaghetti, I recall that it was your favorite, is it not?" he asked. Hanna smiled and nodded, gesturing to the bottle of wine.

"That it is, and you picked the perfect wine to accompany it," she said.

Alfred shook his head and began to plate the food. "Wine… I remember when you two were too young to even buy the stuff, let alone drink it at dinner," Alfred said.

Bruce rolled his eyes and looked back at Hanna, his own wine glass in hand. "Here we go, reminiscing about the old days," he said.

"Sometimes the old days are all we have left," she said, looking down at her glass. Alfred turned around and placed two plates down on the island.

"History is what makes us what we are. Sometimes it's easier to bond over history than to create a relationship over nothing," Alfred said, smiling at Hanna, though his gaze flashed to Bruce. Bruce seemed to be annoyed but hid it well.

"Thank you for cooking, Alfred. It really does bring back memories," she said.

"Can't say they were all good," Bruce added. Alfred shot him a look and handed them silverware.

"Forgive me, Master Wayne, but I don't see you puling out the frying pan," he said. Hanna chuckled and began to dig into her food, not bothering to wait for Bruce to start. The minute she took the first bite, she was reminded of times where he would make this dish for her when she spent the night, or when the three of them would have a late night snack and she would demand Chicken Parmesan.

"It's fantastic, as always," she said, taking a sip of her wine.

"Why thank you," he said.

"You should join us, Alfred," Bruce suggested. Hanna nodded and smiled at the elderly butler.

"Yes, you should. We can reminisce about the good old days, when Bruce tried to sneak out of the manor to Paul Reeds party," she said.

Bruce chuckled and shot her a look. "As I recall, you were the one who called me up and told me to hurry my ass up so you wouldn't be late," he said.

"In my defense, you took forever to get ready for something. Someone had to give you a small push," she said. Alfred smiled, noticing the two of them bonding a lot quicker than he thought and shook his head.

"I best excuse myself. I shall see you both in the morning," he said.

"You won't stay?" Hanna asked. Alfred shook his head and placed the bottle of wine between the two of them.

"No, I shall be leaving. Goodnight Miss Hanna, Master Wayne," he said. Bruce nodded and finished the last bit of his chicken.

"Night Alfred," he said. Hanna said her own goodbye before turning to her own food and practically inhaling the chicken. After a moment of silent eating, Hanna finally spoke.

"Bruce, thank you for letting stay here. I probably would be fine in my apartment, but with what happened at the club…" she said, trailing off.

Bruce smiled and took her hand in his. "I'm just glad you made it out alright."

"Yes, well… I'm glad you made it out alright," she said, keeping her hand in his.

Bruce nodded, knowing that it was a close call, for a moment. He had still been quite drunk when he was Batman, and that criminal, the Olympian, had been a pain. He called himself, Hades, lord of the underworld. Whoever he was, he was trained well, and almost gave him a hard time. If it weren't for a luck break he probably wouldn't have been able to overpower him and leave him for the police .

"I was worried about you," she said, breaking him out of his train of thought.

"You don't have to, I made it out alright," he said.

Hanna raised her eyebrows as she moved closer to him. "Bruce, there were men with big guns, and no moral code. Hell, it's a miracle anyone got out of there. If Batman hadn't shown up…" she trailed off. Bruce almost chuckled at her saying that. They hardly ever spoke about his alter-ego (granted, he doubted she had any clue that Batman was his alter-ego), and hearing her talk about it so nonchalantly, was amusing.

"Thank God for Batman," he said. Hanna raised an eyebrow and took a sip of her wine.

"Not a big fan then?" she said.

"He did kill Harvey Dent. What's there to be a fan of?" he asked.

Hanna shook her head and placed her glass down before speaking. "So you think. I don't buy it. Why would a guy risk his neck for Gotham kill the one person who was supposed to save the city, it makes no sense," her words were filled with a small fire that he had not heard from in a while. It was endearing, and he found himself smiling despite the look she gave him.

"Maybe he went off the deep end? Too much pressure. He just snapped and killed the shining future this city had," he said. He paused to take a drink and looked at the table. "He was a great man till the end," he said as an afterthought, a small hint of sorrow in his voice.

"Almost," she said in a whisper, causing him to glance up at her. She was looking down at the wine glass, trying to will away the memories of that night. Things had gotten better, but she had still the occasional nightmare.

"Hanna… nothing is going to hurt you here. Not Harvey, not the Joker… nothing, not even those Olympians. I promise," he said. Hanna glanced up, confused at how he went from saying Harvey was a hero, to suddenly promising to protect her from him. Her eyes met his, and in a brief moment, she found herself speechless. His gaze was intense, and she felt her insides burn as he moved closer.

"Bruce," she said, her voice coming out in short breaths as he leaned over and let his lips hover above her own.

"I'll protect you," he said softly. She chuckled and let her hand out of his, to raise it to his cheek.

"I know you will… you always have," she said softly.

Bruce frowned and let his forehead rest against hers. "Not always," he said, letting his now free hand to rest on her leg.

"The past belongs in the past. Maybe it's time we both left it there," she said. He gave a small nod of his head, and she pressed her lips together, her next words coming out in a mere whisper. "With Rachel too…"

Bruce pulled away for a second, his eyes meeting hers as he took in her words. The whole time they had reconnected, she had yet to mention Rachel. Then again, that had been when they were focused on being friends. Now, they were teetering on something more, and he knew what her fear was; Being compared to Rachel. He could not blame her for that. No one wanted that when being almost involved in… well whatever they were. Yet, her words almost slapped him in the face as the words tumbled out of her mouth. Put Rachel in the past? The woman he thought he was going to marry? He loved her, how could he throw her to the side?

_Loved._ The key word. She wasn't there. She had passed on. Hanna, however, was here. She was opening herself to him, willing to let him in, despite the fact that he could hurt her. Only if he left Rachel where she belonged. In the past.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have brought it up. I just… I don't know what I was thinking. I know how you felt about her I just-" Hanna stood up, but stopped when Bruce grabbed her hand and gently pulled her back down.

"Hanna… I don't want to make a promise I can't keep, but I want to at least try," he said, the moment of truth coming out. Hanna felt her stomach lurch pleasantly and had to resist the urge jump him.

"I wouldn't ask for anything more," she said. He smiled and leaned forward, his lips pressing against hers. Hanna smiled into the kiss and pushed herself closer, enjoying the feel of his arms wrapping around her body. Bruce responded by pulling her onto his lap, pulling them onto his stool, and knocking over the one she was sitting on. Hanna went to pull away to glance at the turned over chair, only to have Bruce gently guide her back to his lips and let one hand slip under her shirt. The feel of his callused hands making their way up her back, causing her to shiver in delight and let her fingers tangle in his hair.

Feeling his tongue graze her lips, she opened her mouth and let his tongue explore her own. His hands continued to trace over her skin, every move making her shiver with delight. Her body pressed closer to his, and he felt his own skin tingle and his pants get tighter at the contact. He lifted her up at once and placed her on the counter, his hand haphazardly moving the glasses and plates out of the way. In the back of his mind, he heard the sound of glass breaking, but didn't realize what happened until he heard Hanna hiss in his mouth and pull away, holding her hand up away from the counter.

"Shit," she said, looking at the mark now embedded in her hand. Bruce pulled away and grabbed her hand, frowning as he saw the line of blood on her hand, and the small shard of glass sticking out of her hand.

"Hanna," he said, looking at the broken wine glass that was, no doubt, part of the glass sticking out of her hand.

"Of course, this happens," she said. Bruce sighed and almost flinched as she pulled it out of her hand, wincing herself and looking away. "Can you get something to cover this? Before I gag?" she asked.

"Of course," Bruce said, walking over to the sink and grabbing a rag and soaking it in water. He also grabbed the first aid kit and made his way back over, trying not to laugh as she kept her eyes closed and her hand outstretched. Bruce grabbed her hand gently and let the rag soak up the blood that now stained her skin. For a brief second, he was brought back to the night he found her in the alley, a gun shot wound in her shoulder, and blood pouring around her. This wound was no where near as serious, but still had him on edge.

"Well, there goes the mood," she said softly, smiling at him as he cleaned up her cut. Bruce let a chuckle slip past his lips and pulled the rag away. It wasn't deep enough to need stitches, but deep enough to probably leave a scar. Next to it, he noticed a similar line, and furrowed his eyebrows.

"What's this?" he asked, his thumb tracing over the old scar as the rag finished cleaning up the rest of the blood.

"Oh… the night Nate proposed I had a mishap with another wine glass. That one I needed to go to the hospital for," she said.

Bruce shook his head as he began to bandage her cut. "So this a recurring thing with you then? Glad to be included," he said. He gently finished wrapping her hand with gauze, and hoped the Neosporin would be enough to kill any sort of infection.

"Well, I thought I broke that habit years ago. I might have to start asking for plastic wine glasses from now on," she said, pulling her hand back and going over the bandage.

"I'll get Alfred right on that," Bruce said, watching as she deemed the bandage satisfying enough and let her hand drop to the ground.

"Thank you. I'm sorry I ruined our… moment, I guess," she said bashfully.

Bruce gave a reassuring smile and kissed her cheek, right next to her mouth. The intimate gesture was enough to send shivers down her spine. "You ruined nothing. I broke the glass," he said.

"I guess we'll just have to have a moment later," she said.

"Till then, this place needs to get cleaned up," Bruce said, looking at the shards of broken glass.

"Well, if you get the glass, I don't mind cleaning the dishes," she said. Bruce glanced down at her hand and shook his head.

"Maybe we should just leave the dishes for Alfred?" he asked.

Hanna pressed her lips together as she thought it over. "He won't be happy," she said, thinking of the poor mess the butler would have to clean up the next morning.

"He never is."

* * *

_Authors Note: Well, it hasn't been two years. I guess I'm making progress. I apologize for this being later than I wanted. My goal was to get it out before The Dark Knight Rises came out… but that obviously didn't happen. I have decided to actually have Hanna in the movie. So my series will end with the movie series. Note there will be a couple obvious changes. Hopefully I'll get this done soon. I'm going to attempt NaNoWri Month, so after that I'm going to try and finish this. _

_That is, if school doesn't kill me first. College sucks. Lots of homework. Lots of equations. Lots of forgetting the equation regression for a quadratic with a degree of two. Ugh… stupid. I hate math._

_Well, time to end this sucker. Enjoy. See you in seven months. Hopefully sooner. Till then, feel free to review._


End file.
